Category Archives: Development

Development, Industry

Communication: Expanding to New Markets in the Poor World

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My 14 month old daughter knows how to use my iPhone. I don’t say this to brag about her skills (OK, maybe to brag just a bit) but to make an important point about access to technology. In the rich world kids under the age of 18 see it as a given that everybody has access to computers and smartphones. Trying to get them to understand that it’s not as easy in the much larger poor world can be tricky.

To get them in the right frame of mind to understand this disparity I ask them to imagine that George Washington has come back to life. What do they believe will be the advancements he finds most shocking? Generally our answers always come back to the same two themes: transportation and communication. Transportation creates its own dialogue but for the purposes of this post I will focus on communication. I tell them that for the poorest people in the world, they would find it equally as shocking that seemingly everybody is connected by mobile device.

The ability to communicate is paramount in our society, yet we take it for granted. At any moment I can call my wife and ask if I need to buy milk or to assure that one of us is picking up our children from school. I can make a call to a friend in New York City or post a Facebook message to my cousin in South Korea. Regardless, the idea of my message or call not getting through is nowhere on my radar.

In contrast, poverty can be so overwhelming in the poor world that the idea of communicating with a person across the country or on another continent is as realistic as riding a bike to the moon E.T. style. Yet, slowly but surely standards of living are improving in parts of the poor world. As the middle class grows they are demanding many of the same amenities the rich world enjoys, including smartphones.

To meet this growing demand several companies have attempted to create an affordable and functional phone for the developing world. One of these companies named Obi Worldphone is led by John Sculley, the former CEO of Apple. His goal: to make a top notch phone for under $200. After recently revealing two different models that have been highly rated and priced at $199 and $129 respectively I’d say “Mission Accomplished.” Having met their goal Obi hopes to fill the technological gap in the poor world and make his company highly profitable as they go after one billion potential new customers .

Alarming Fact, Development

Human Geography: Alarming Fact # 2

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Alarming Fact: The rich world throws away as much food as all of Sub-Saharan Africa produces.

The Human Geo Guy’s Take: Two ways to look at this. First, the moral quandary, we live in a world that suffers from mass starvation yet in the United States we are able to sustain countless All-You-Can-Eat Buffets and childhood traditions like “Food Fights.” Then there is the economic perspective, redirecting food to the poor world before it spoils is not a practical reality. Any help sent that way must be thought out and planned, not a last second scramble. Viable options for food waste must be created that are better than spending resources transporting garbage from our homes and businesses to take up space in our growing landfills.

Development, Industry

Human Geography: China Seeks Even Cheaper Labor

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Living in the United States it has been a given for many years that so many of our goods are being manufactured in China. As a classroom activity my students often look at the “Made in…” labels of our clothing and the manufacturing stamps on goods, without question China is in the lead for most times mentioned. The reality is that China has been in its “Golden Era” of industrial growth long enough that they have started to see some of the long term benefits come to pass. Their GDP per capita has grown as well as the average standard of life.

As economic conditions improve in China so do the expectations of their workers. They are beginning to demand higher wages and better working conditions. Chinese manufacturers are realizing that their employees are starting to request the same things that American workers demanded generations ago. Just as American manufacturing started to do in the 1970s the Chinese manufacturers are looking to send jobs to other parts of the world with cheaper labor.

I recently read an article in Bloomberg News about a Chinese shoe company that has set up a factory in Ethiopia. The company did not attempt to hide that they specifically set up an operation there because of the remarkably low wages the Ethiopian workers would accept. The average monthly salary in the shoe factory was approximately $40 a month. In contrast, the average factory worker in China gained over ten times that amount.

While the lure of cheap labor may cause some Chinese companies to relocate their operations it will not be smooth roads to achieving success. Smooth roads are actually part of the problem, or more specifically the lack of smooth roads. The Chinese manufacturers that have already moved to Ethiopia have had numerous issues with transportation and their profits have been seriously damaged as a result. There is mounting pressure on the Ethiopian government to commit money to infrastructure to draw in foreign investment, as is often the case in the African countries they must now choose between immediate relief for humanitarian struggles or temporarily ignore these issues in an attempt to build a long term solution through economic growth.

Development

Human Geography: Economic Development Alternative to the World Bank?

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Last week political leaders from Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin America gathered in Brazil for an important global event that was not the World Cup. It was a meeting between the heads of state from Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, collectively referred to as the BRICS. These countries were not thrown together randomly for the sake of creating an acronym that sounds intimidating, they have been placed in a group because they are considered the emerging markets, this means that they are transitioning from being part of the poor world to increasing their level of economic development. The BRICS have seen their role in the global economy grow for a variety of reasons: Brazil and South Africa as regional leaders, Russia as a resource center for Europe, India for its growing role in communications and as the future home of the largest population on Earth, and lastly China as the manufacturing center of the world.

The BRICS Summit achieved a major agreement between the five countries, the establishment of the New Development Bank that will be headquartered in Shanghai. The main objective of the bank will be to provide an alternative to the World Bank and International Monetary Fund for countries looking to borrow money and invest in development and infrastructure. The BRICS see the new bank as vital to economic growth for the poor world as it would shift power away from the US and Western Europe who have dominated the global flow of money for centuries.

One of the key elements required for success on the AP® Human Geography Exam is being able to identify the differences that exist between the less developed world and the rich world. One of the common themes for this course is that as living standards improve in parts of the poor world and globalization emphasizes their role in the world economy, the power and influence of the less developed regions increase. As a human geography student it is critical to analyze the economic and political factors that make the BRICS desire to reach equal footing as the traditional powers. Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa see the establishment of the New Development Bank as an immediate and critical step towards leveling the playing field with the rich world.