Global Development » Causes and Consequences of Uneven Development

What is uneven development?

Countries around the world are not equally developed. A child born in one country may expect a long, healthy life with good schools. A child born in another may face disease, poor food supply and few chances to earn a decent wage. This gap is called uneven development.

No single reason explains it. Geographers group the causes into three types: physical, economic and historical. They often work together, so one problem makes another worse.

Key terms:

• Uneven development: the difference in levels of development and quality of life between countries and regions.
• Primary product: a raw material taken from the ground or grown, such as crops, oil or minerals.
• Manufactured goods: products made in factories from raw materials, such as cars and phones.
• Trade: buying and selling goods between countries.
• Colony: a country ruled and controlled by another country.
• Disparity: a big difference or gap.

Physical causes

Physical causes come from the natural environment. They make it harder for a country to grow its economy.

Remember that physical problems do not doom a country. Some countries with few natural resources have developed well. Physical causes make development harder, but they are only part of the story.

Economic causes

Economic causes are about how a country earns money and uses it.

Relying on primary products

Many poorer countries earn most of their money by selling primary products. The prices of these swing up and down from year to year. A bad price one year means less money for schools and hospitals. Manufactured goods usually sell for much more than raw materials, so countries that only export raw materials earn less than countries that make finished goods.

Unfair trade and trade barriers

Some richer countries put taxes or limits on goods coming in from poorer countries. This protects their own industries but makes it harder for poorer countries to sell their goods.

Debt

Some countries borrow money and then have to pay it back with interest. Repayments can take up a large share of the country's income. Less is left to spend on health, education and roads.

Lack of investment and infrastructure

Businesses need good roads, electricity and a trained workforce. Where these are missing, companies do not want to invest. Without jobs and new industry, the country stays poor.

Historical causes

Events in the past still affect countries today.

• Colonial rule: many countries in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean were colonies of European powers. The ruling country often took raw materials and crops for its own use and built railways and ports to move them out, rather than to help local people. Most of the profit left the colony.
• Borders: colonial powers often drew borders without thinking about the people living there. This split ethnic groups apart or forced rival groups together, which sometimes led to conflict after independence.
• Conflict and war: fighting destroys buildings and farms, kills skilled workers and frightens away investors. It can take many years to recover.
• Slow start: countries that industrialised early, such as the UK, built up wealth, skills and infrastructure over a long time. Countries freed from colonial rule much later started from far behind.

Consequences: gaps in wealth

The first consequence of uneven development is a wide disparity in wealth. People in the poorest countries earn far less than people in the richest ones. Many families live on a very small income, spend most of it on food, and cannot save.

Low income also means the government collects little tax. It has less money to spend on schools, roads, clean water and hospitals, so poor countries find it hard to escape poverty. Wealth gaps can also grow inside a country, between a rich city and a poor rural area.

Consequences: gaps in health

Poorer countries usually have worse health. This links to the social measures you have already met.

• People are more likely to be undernourished because food is scarce or too expensive.
• Dirty water and poor sanitation spread diseases such as cholera and diarrhoea.
• There are fewer doctors, hospitals and medicines, so illnesses that are easily treated in richer countries can kill.
• Life expectancy is lower and infant mortality is higher.

Ill health then makes the wealth gap worse. People who are sick cannot work, and children who miss school grow up with fewer skills.

Consequences: international migration

Uneven development also causes international migration, which is people moving from one country to another. Many people leave poorer countries to find work, better pay, safety, healthcare and education elsewhere. Look back at push and pull factors: poverty, lack of jobs and conflict push people away, while jobs and services pull them towards wealthier countries.

Exam-style question

(a) Give one physical cause of uneven development. [1 mark]

(b) Explain how two historical or economic causes can lead to uneven development. [4 marks]

(c) Explain how uneven development can lead to international migration. [3 marks]