Changes in Development (Edexcel A Level Geography)

Measuring Development

• Development can be measured in different ways using single and composite (combined) indicators
• A composite indicator uses more than one indicator to assess development, for example the Human Development Index uses three different measures
• An example of a single indicator that can be used is income which can be measured in different ways
• Gross Domestic Product (GDP) - the total (financial) value of goods and services produced in a country. It can be divided by the total population of the country to work out a per capita (average per person) figure to use to compare to other countries
• Gross National Income (GNI) - the total amount of money earned by the people and businesses within a country. A per capita figure can also be calculated for GNI
• Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) measures the price of certain goods in different countries which can help compare the purchasing power of different currencies

Economic and Social Measures of Development

Widening Income Inequality

• As globalisation has increased so has the development gap 
• The global economy has grown much faster than the population has grown
• This economic growth has been accompanied by a changing spatial pattern of global wealth
• All continents have seen a rise in average incomes since 1950, 
• This rise has been very slow in the poorest countries of Africa
• The average income gap between the world’s richest and poorest has widened as a result of the rapid growth in European and North American countries
• Absolute poverty has fallen globally as a result of the introduction of the Millennium Development Goals in 2000
• Poverty does still exist in many countries
• Many low-income countries have progressed to middle-income since the 1970s creating a world of developed, emerging and developing economies

Gini Coefficient

• The Gini Coefficient is a measure of inequality in the distribution of household income
• Countries are scored between 0 and 100, the higher the value, the greater the income inequality
• A score of 0 suggests that everyone has the same income in a country
• A score of 100 suggests a single person receives all of a country’s income

Gini Coefficients for Wealth within Countries (2019)

Winners & Losers Globalisation

• Globalisation has created winners and losers in developing, emerging and developed economies

Examples of Winners and Losers of Globalisation

Trends in Economic Development

• All regions have seen a rise in GDP per capita since 1820, however the rise in Africa, Asia and Latin America has been significantly less than Western Europe and the USA

GDP per capita (PPP) Growth since 1820

Environmental Issues & Management

• The majority of global environmental issues can be linked to globalisation for example:
• Converting 40% of the world’s terrain into productive agricultural land has resulted in the loss of habitats and biodiversity
• Intensive agriculture and cattle ranching can cause a range of environmental impacts from depleting groundwater sources to the removal of mangrove forest (increasing flood risk)
• These environmental issues have been felt more by developing and emerging countries
• There is now a greater awareness of these risks to the environment that can be associated with globalisation and attempts are being made to reduce these risks through environmental management