What is Development? Flashcards
What is the aim of the course?
To use the tools of political science (not economics) to:
- Explain why some places are more developed than others
- Diagnose why development initiatives frequently fail
- Propose solutions that have proven evidence of success in boosting development
Definition of politics and examples
How public decisions are made
- Who gets what, when, how (Lasswell 1963)
- Examples
– Whether we build a road or a railway
– How we decrease CO2 emissions
What can we be developing?
- Economic development (considered the most important)
– GDP per capita - Social development
– Improving healthcare, education - Political development
– Democracy - Psychological development
– Personal well-being, happiness
Definition of modernization theory and examples
A linear transition from the same “traditional” start to the same “modern” end
- Examples
– Increasing GDP per capita
– Increasing urbanization
– Increasing education
– “All good things go together” (when we see income go up, we will likely see the other things also go up)
Freedom to do what? (Development as freedom (Sen 1992))
- Participate in politics
- Engage in economic transactions
- Social opportunities through education and healthcare
- Transparency during interactions
- Security of life
What limits freedom? (Development as freedom (Sen 1992))
- Violence/Repression
- State restrictions
– eg. being prevented from entering certain professions / transactions - Poverty
- Poor public services
– eg. healthcare - Lack of opportunities
– eg. Nigeria has thousands of university graduates a year who are unable to find jobs (within their degree) once they graduate / enter the labor market
Why does freedom matter? and examples
- Intrinsic / Constitutive reasons: Freedom matters in itself
- Instrumental reason: Freedoms promote other freedoms
– eg. democracy prevent famine but also matters for political freedom itself
– eg. markets promote wealth but also promote economic freedom itself
Connection between development and freedom
Development is about complementarities, not trade-offs ( = modernization theory)
- But “freedoms” let people choose what they value (subjective development)
General points from Sen (Development as freedom (Sen 1992))
- Not just “freedom from” interference (libertarianism; negative freedom)
- Freedom = capabilities (opportunities; positive freedom)
– eg. the capability to live a long life
– eg. the capability to become a teacher - Not just income
– Not all ends can be bought
– Needs vary: resources are converted into capabilities - Not about what people do with their freedoms/capabilities
– People choose specific functionings
Definition of sustainable development
Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (UN Bruntland Commission 1987)
What is strong and weak sustainability (sustainable development)
Strong sustainability:
- Natural capital does not fall
Weak sustainability
- The sum of natural and physical capital does not fall
The “development” route to sustainability
- Wealth and education reduce fertility and support cleaner technologies, reducing environmental pressures
- Rapid technological innovation will help us solve problems like climate change and become more resilient
- The Kuznets curve
The “sustainability” route to development
- Tackling environmental challenges will stimulate new innovations and investments
- Conserving assets improves their productivity, eg. new medical cures in the rainforest
- Avoiding climate stresses prevents conflict and boosts yields
Post-development critiques
- The discourse of “development” makes people think of themselves as “underdeveloped”
- Development is an imposition of power and hierarchy
- Development has failed on its own terms
- Development is an industry
The discourse of “development makes people think of themselves as “underdeveloped” (post-development critiques)
- Eight years ago, Helena [Norberh-Hodge] asked a young Ladakhi where were the poorest houses “we have no poor houses in our village” wad the proud reply. Recently Helena saw the same Ladakhi talking to an American tourist and overheard him say “if only you could do something for us; we are so poor”
– Poverty is a myth construct and the invention of a particular civilization (Rahnema 1997)
– Rejecting modernization theory: we’re not all traveling in the same direction; more is not always better
Development is an imposition of power and hierarchy (post-development critiques)
- A weapon of the Cold War and post-colonialism
- Development as “planned poverty” (Illich 1997)
- A top down, ethnocentric, and technocratic approach (Escobar 1992)
- Westernization and eradicating diversity
Development has failed on its own terms (post-development critiques)
- Rising inequality
- Delusions and disappointment, failures and crimes have been steady companions of development and they tell a common story: it did not work (Sachs 1992)
Development is an industry (post-development critiques)
- $152.8bn (OECD 2019)
- Governments, NGOs, BINGOs, for-profit companies, Foundations
- Reliant on the continuation of poverty
- Lobbying governments for new contracts
- Governments seeking markets for their companies
What is the main purpose of the Human Development Index (HDI)?
The HDI measures development by combining health, education, and income indicators, inspired by Amartya Sen’s idea of ‘Development as Freedom.’
What is a key limitation of the HDI and Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI)?
Both indices reward resource use and ignore sustainability, failing to account for the impact on future generations.
What does the Ecological Footprint measure, and what does it reveal about global resource use?
The Ecological Footprint measures the biologically productive area needed to support human activities. It shows that current global resource use requires 1.75 Earths, and 5 Earths if everyone lived like the USA.
