13.1: Introduction

Learning Objectives

By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:

• Critique the disparities between the Global North and the Global South.
• Appraise a state’s level of economic development by applying various measurements of development.
• Identify basic human needs and describe the Global South's progress to meet those needs.
• Identify key environmental challenges and international responses/policies to remedy the problems.
• Design and defend a development strategy for a specific developing country.

The field of international development emerged as the post-war reconstruction effort following World War II. It has since evolved into global initiatives, such as the Millennium Development Goals and Sustainable Development Goals (discussed later in this chapter). Between 1990 and 2020, extreme poverty rates fell from 36 to eight percent. Maternal, infant, and child mortality rates fell by one-half, and life expectancy rose from 65 to 72 years. The international and medical communities defeated smallpox, eliminated polio in all but two states, cut deaths from malaria by one-half, and saved 17 million lives from HIV/AIDS (Ingram, 2019). The COVID-19 pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the rise of authoritarianism worldwide disrupted the upward trend toward economic and social development. How soon will the international community recommit to its development goals?

This chapter reviews development measures, goals, and policies aiming to reduce poverty, increase economic growth, improve health and education, and promote sustainable development. The chapter explores the persistent economic disparities between wealthy and low-income states, assessing the role and effectiveness of foreign aid, foreign direct investments, and international institutions in promoting development. Before this, however, the chapter briefly reviews the theoretical approaches and key vocabulary.

Theoretical Approaches

International development is one aspect of the field of international political economy (IPE). As discussed in Chapter 12, the dominant approach to studying IPE is liberalism, emphasizing free markets, trade, and cooperation. Liberalism argues that open markets, free trade, and economic integration bring prosperity, and neo-liberal policies push for privatization, deregulation, and free trade (for a review of liberalism, see Chapter 4).

Marxism and feminism criticize liberalism by pointing out that its policies often worsen inequalities within and between states. Marxists argue that economic structures favor the wealthy, reinforcing economic inequalities between states. Feminists argue that capitalism embeds gender inequalities and, therefore, market-based policies reinforce economic inequalities within states. In short, both critiques offer an observation that as powerful states become wealthier, poor states become poorer.

From the 1800s to the 1980s, global inequality (inequality between states) grew due to colonialism and industrialization in the West. In the 1980s, global inequality started to decrease due to the economic rise of China and India, which lifted millions out of poverty. Yet while global inequality started to decrease in the 1980s, inequality within states increased, particularly in states with advanced economies. Why is such economic inequality a concern?

As constructivists point out, inequality is bad not only for low-income states, but also for wealthy states, as it can lead to the spread of diseases, refugee crises, and instability. Creating a stable future for the world therefore requires going beyond the tenets of liberalism by addressing economic disparity, achieving gender equality, and finding collective identity and shared norms.

Key Vocabulary

When discussing international development, scholars use various terms. In the past, states with lower income levels—particularly those within Asia, Africa, and Latin America—were labeled as “Third World” or “underdeveloped.” In contrast, states with wealthier economies—mainly in North America, Western Europe, and later in East Asia—were referred to as “First World” or “developed.” The term “Third World” was coined during the Cold War to refer to states that were not aligned with either the Western bloc, led by the United States (the “First World”), or the Eastern bloc, led by the Soviet Union (the “Second World”). Meanwhile, the term “underdeveloped” reflected a Eurocentric view of industrial and technological backwardness, implying inferiority and failure. Over time, observers rejected these labels as derogatory and pejorative.

Image \(\PageIndex{1}\): This map illustrates the Global North and Global South based on the UN's classification of developed and developing economies, rather than strictly geographic distinctions. (Source: "World map. UNCTAD classification of economies" by Specialgst - created with mapchart.net based on UN Trade and Development Classifications (UNCTADstat) / UNCTAD Handbook of Statistics 2023 is licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.)

By the 1990s, scholars adopted the Global North and Global South as more neutral terminology to refer to the global division in wealth. As illustrated in the world map above, the Global North refers to states with higher living standards, longer life expectancies, higher employment numbers, and more advanced infrastructure. Approximately 25 percent of the world’s population lives in the Global North, while controlling about 80 percent of the world’s wealth. The Global South refers to states with lower income levels, less industrialization, less infrastructure, struggling economies, less advanced healthcare, and poorer education. Approximately 75 percent of the world’s population lives in the Global South, while controlling about 20 percent of the world’s wealth. The terms Global South and Global North are not strictly geographical. For example, Australia and New Zealand, though located in the Southern Hemisphere, are part of the Global North; China, despite its rapid economic growth and global influence, is still part of the Global South because of its persistent rural poverty and developmental disparities. The North-South Gap, then, refers to the persistent disparity in wealth, development, and power between the world’s economically advanced states (Global North) and the less economically developed states (Global South).