Topic 8 - EQ1 - Health, Human Rights and Intervention Flashcards
What are 6 traditional measures of development?
-GDP (monetary value of all goods and services produced in one year in a country)
-GDP per capita
-GDP per capita PPP based
-GNI per capita (GDP with earnings from abroad added, e.g. from TNC operations abroad)
-HDI (composite measure of life expectancy, education and GDP per capita 1-10)
-Gini coefficient (shows income inequality, displayed on a graph)
What are 3 alternative measures of development?
-Happy Planet Index (measure of the extent as to which countries deliver sustainable well being based on life expectancy, experienced well-being and ecological footprint)
-The World Happiness Index (score from 1-10 on the happiness of citizens)
-The Freedom Index (score of civil liberties of citizens from 1-10)
Why is it important to use a variety of measures when measuring development?
Countries rank very differently on different measures, e.g. Qatar ranks very highly on GDP per capita but not particularly well on the Freedom Index or the GINI coefficient international rankings)
How is health (social) and economic development linked?
Professor Hans Rosling has identified that countries that have developed most rapidly economically have improved the most in measures of health (general health, family size and life expectancy), South Korea in the 20th C has been an example of this. Rosling believes that fro countries lagging behind in terms of health the best way of improving health is simply economic growth. The link is so strong because the richer a country is the better the healthcare standard and accessibility can be because countries can afford more doctors, hospitals, medicines and nurses.
What is Sharia Law
Islam’s legal system derived from the Quran and deeds and sayings of the prophet. It is a code for living that all muslims should adhere to. However, in the Muslim world Sharia law is often not restricted to religious matters but also extends into inheritance, marriage and punishment with many countries, such as Iraq, having sharia embedded into their constitutions.
How has Sharia law limited development?
The Islamic World does not see secularisation as necessary for development.
-From a western perspective its strict rules on women’s and LGBT rights are limiting to social development (women could only recently drive in Saudi Arabia)
-It has been seen as economically limiting due to its strong opposition to bond making and interest schemes
-Many claim a century old parallel legal system simply cannot exist in a developed country
How has Sharia law worked alongside development?
Many Muslims see Sharia law as flexible and fully compatible with western ideas of development and human rights.
-In Egypt the Supreme Court asserts jurisdiction over any questions of Islamic law and reconcile Sharia with international human rights and economic liberalisation
-Islamic financial business is developing around the world but simply without interest payments
What was former Bolivian President Evo Morales’ development strategy for Bolivian?
He drew up a new constitution in 2012 putting ‘The Law of Mother Earth’ into effect which recognised that “Mother Earth is a living dynamic system made up of the undivided community of all living beings, who are all interconnected, interdependent and complementary, sharing a common destiny”. It was a development model different to the western one due to the way it put nature first.
How did Morales’ development strat aid Bolivian development?
Environmental issues were placed first, a monumental move in the modern world where climate change is such a big issue. Conservation schemes were well funded and extensive, unsustainable industry was controlled and pollution was limited reducing Bolivia’s carbon footprint.
How did Morales’ development strat limit Bolivian development?
His approach required major economic change and reorientation, especially due to the fact that the Bolivian economy has historically relied upon mining exports which he had to limit due to his environmental priorities. Domestic social issues were also arguably neglected too, e.g. when Morales was president 20% lacked clean water and 40% sanitation.
What are main reasons as to why education is vital in developing human capital and overall development?
-Helps the development of a skilled workforce (doctors, lawyers, researchers)
-Controls family sizes as the more time spent in education during fertile years the more likely a career will develop and thus having children is limited to later in life
-Education develops basic hygiene and sanitation which improves the quality of lives which is key in improving human capital
-Teaches decision making and accountability which is key in improving human capital
-It is vital for the development of gender equality, not only does female education and literacy rate improvements enhance the contribution of female human capital especially in the quaternary sector, but it is also linked to improved female health and lower mortality rates, but only 48% of countries have equal access to education for both genders
-Cultural appreciation (history, literature, geography)
-Democratic participation higher in educated people
What are 5 factors that may prevent fair access to education across the globe?
-Wealth
-Gender
-Social class
-Religious/ethnic persecution
-Disablity
Why does wealth limit fair access to education across the globe?
Regions with lower levels of wealth and widespread poverty often have significantly less children in education. Children in poor parts of the world often need to work and bring in an income for their family at a young age, or local governments simply cannot afford public schooling for local people. Liberia, S Sudan and Eritrea have less than 50% of their primary school aged children in education due to the lack of wealth in these countries.
Why does gender limit fair access to education across the globe?
Many traditions across the world give preferential treatment to male children in regards to education, especially in Asian and African societies, particularly in rural areas. Women make up 54% of the world’s uneducated population and the literacy rate for women in Niger is just 11%.
Why does social class limit fair access to education across the globe?
Similarly to wealth, many working class children simply have to work for money for the family instead of getting an education, also, not everywhere has universal access to education which excludes lower class children.
Why does religious/ethnic persecution limit fair access to education across the globe?
In many countries the same rights are not guaranteed to all groups and there may be discrimination against children because of this restricting them from accessing education.
Why does disability limit fair access to education across the globe?
In many countries the physically or mentally disabled are treated as second class citizens and so are simply disregarded or placed in institutions or hospitals from a young age. Even in developing countries that are more equal schools often do not have the facilities to cater to disabled peoples’ specific needs.
How does health and life expectancy vary in the developing world (Africa)?
Many sub-Saharan counties have been able to invest more into their economic development and their people’s living standards recently resulting in the fast growth of many African economies. However, there are considerable variations between African nations in terms of life expectancy, infant and maternal mortality, and access to food, safe water and effective sanitation:
-The Democratic Republic of the Congo has been ravaged by conflict for much of the past 30 years (since 1998) and is one of the world’s poorest countries, even within Africa its poverty stands out. It is rated among the lowest countries in global HDI, its estimated GDP per capita is the world’s third lowest, 40% of under 5s suffer from chronic malnutrition, 40% of children aged 5-14 are forced to work instead of attend school, 47.6% of the populations’ water supply is inadequate, the average life expectancy is just 56 and most women have their first child before 20, plus infant and maternal mortality rates are the world’s highest (however, health expenditure as a % of GDP is higher in the DRC than in many other African countries)
-Inversely, Algeria has transformed in the last 30 or so years, health has improved particularly. Between 1980 and 2014 GDP per capita increased by about 30%, life expectancy at birth increased by 16.6 years to 76, the expected number of years of schooling increased by 4.5 years and Algeria’s HDI value rose from 0.574 to 0.736 to become one of the highest HDI values in Africa. However, many measures still display a number of the characteristics of a developing country, including relatively low literacy rates, lack of sanitation and nearly a quarter of Algerians still being in poverty.
Where is the developed world at in terms of health?
The developed world is much further ahead of than the developing world in health and life expectancy, however, statistical variations exist. For example, at birth in 2015 an Indian child had a life expectancy of 66, whereas Japanese children had a life expectancy of almost 84 years
What are 2 big reasons for differences in health in the developed and emerging world?
Health spending and lifestyle.
