Studies Note

Comparision Between Developed And Underdeveloped Countries

A developed country is a sovereign state which has a highly developed economy and advanced technological infrastructure relative to other less developed nations. Most commonly the criteria for evaluating the degree of economic development is gross domestic product (GDP), the per capita income, level of industrialization, amount of widespread infrastructure and general standard of living.[1] Which criteria is to be used and which countries are classified as being developed is a contentious issue.

Developed countries have post-industrial economies, meaning the service sector provides more wealth than the industrial sector. They are contrasted with developing countries, which are in the process of industrialization, or undeveloped countries, which are pre-industrial and almost entirely agrarian

Developed Country

 Widespread poverty :

The most important feature of the under­developed countries is general poverty. Poverty is the fundamental malady. The per capita income in these countries is very low in comparison to the other developed countries such as the U.S.A., West Germany, France, Canada, etc. For instance, per capita income in the United States and Canada was 58 times and 56 times of the per capita income of India in 1977. "The collective per capita income of the underdeveloped countries average less than one-fourteenth of the per capita income of the rich nations."

The consumption of protein also is more than double in the former than in the latter. In the consumption of non-essential and semi-luxury goods also there are glaring disparities in the levels of per capita consumption. Thus, most of the developing countries are characterised by widespread poverty, hunger, malnutrition, ill-health, diseases and low life expectancy.

The disparity between the developing and the developed countries is widening because of a slower growth rate in the former than the latter. This has added a new dimension' to the problem of underdevelopment in the recent years. In 1977, the developing countries, excluding the oil-producers—with 53 per cent of world population, accounted for only 17 per cent of world GNP. According to 1978 World Bank Atlas the industrialised countries commanded over 63 per cent of world GNP with only 17 per cent of world population.

 Heavy reliance on agriculture :

68% population in Pakistan is living in 46,894 villages, back-ward agriculture is the major occupation of the population. Agriculture sector is back ward due to old and traditional methods of cultivation. In-efficient farmers, tack of credit facilities, unorganized agriculture market etc. 66.7% population is directly or indirectly depending on agriculture sector in Pakistan.

Although agriculture is the main occupation in these countries, yet strangely agricultural techniques are usually primitive, inefficient and out­dated. Agriculture happens to be an overcrowded depressed industry. Agricultural productivity is extremely low. This is reflected in the fact that the share of agriculture in the total employment is disproportionately larger than its share in the national income.

In recent years modern farm technology has been increasingly adopted in these countries. However, the average yield is still much lower than in the developed countries. The paradox is that agriculture in an industrially developed country is much more advanced than in a developing economy. Backward agriculture is a symptom of poverty leading to malnutrition, seasonal hunger and disguised unemployment.

 Capital deficiency :

The deficiency of capital in an important feature of developing countries. Therefore they are often called capital poor economies. The shortage of capital is reflected in the very low capital labour ratio in these countries.

A striking feature of the underdeveloped countries is capital deficiency. An underdeveloped economy has been rightly designated as a "capital poor economy." As Oscar Lange put it, "An underdeveloped economy is an economy in which the available stock of capital goods is not sufficient to employ the total available labour force on the basis of modern techniques of production." The amount of capital per head is very low. Insufficiency of capital equipment per head explains the low level of productivity per worker. The capital deficiency is also reflected in the form of low rate of capital formation. Thus, if the rate of capital formation in a developed country is as high as 30 per cent, in a less developed country it may be 10 to 15 per cent.

Exports of Primary Goods:

The primary and agricultural products are the main exports of these countries. The international trade. For example the main exports products of Pakistan are rice, cotton yarn, fish and garments etc.

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Natural Resources:

Mostly there is shortage of natural resources in developing nations and this is also a cause of their economic backwardness. In various poor countries natural resources are available but they remain un- utilized under-utilized and miss- utilized due to capital shortage, less efficiency of labour, lack of skill and knowledge and limited home market.

Out Flow of Best Brain:

The brilliant and brightest students of developing countries go to developed countries for higher education. After completing their education, they do not want to come back in their own country due to un-satisfaction with low salaries and material comforts, Therefore, they remain in search of better jobs in foreign countries.

Inflation:

High rate of inflation in poor nations causes economic backwardness. Due to high level of price, purchasing power and saving of the consumers tend to decrease. Rate of inflation is 13.3 in 2009 in Pakistan.

Capital formation:

In developing countries the per capita income is very low as compared to the developed countries. So their savings and investments are also low. Due to low savings and investments capital formation rate is also low. Per capital income of Pakistan is $1051 but it is more than $24000 in developed countries,

High Degree of Illiteracy:

The illiteracy rate is high in developing countries as compared to developed countries as compared to developing countries. The illiterate persons do not know the importance of economic development. Pakistan literacy rate is 57% while in advanced countries; it is near to 100%.

Underdeveloped countries

INTRODUCTION:

There are so many causes of under development. Causes of under development are not same in all under developing nation states, somewhere corruption is the major cause, somewhere lack in resources are the major cause, and somewhere wrong policies are the major cause of under development. But the most common cause of under development is the dependency upon developed countries, and terrorism.

STRUGGLE FOR THE IMPROVEMENT:

Since the end of World War II, we have been experiencing a worldwide struggle for the improvement of living conditions in the so-called developing countries.During the early period of development efforts there was little discussion on the historical causes and the real nature of underdevelopment. Theoretical considerations at this time of "cold war" explained the situation of underdevelopment and the path for development from the viewpoint of western or socialist metropoles. Only in more recent times has the viewpoint of developing countries gained momentum in development theory. This has

great practical implications: development theory offers the justification for policies. The answer to the question "What is development?" determines which strategies, policies, projects, what type of industry, or what organization of agriculture should be considered to be in line with development goals or detrimental to these. Different positions in development policy are based on differences in underlying development theories.

CORRUPTION:

Corruption defined as 'the abuse of public power for personal ends' has always existed. During recent decades, however, it has grown both in terms of geographic extent and intensity. Since the mid 1970s, it has infiltrated virtually every country in the world. It was hoped that the easing of political and economic restrictions that characterized the 1990s after the end of the Cold War would have gone some way to reducing this phenomenon. Through increased openness resulting from political pluralism and the freedom of the press, the process of democratization should, under normal circumstances, mobilize efforts to overcome corruption. However, emergent democracies are still fragile and seem to find the task of tackling established self-interests a formidable one [4]

POLITICAL CORRUPTION:

In broad terms, political corruption is when government officials use their governmental powers for illegitimate private gain. Misuse of government power for other purposes, like repression of political opponents and general police brutality, is not considered political corruption. Illegal acts by private persons or corporations not directly involved with the government is not considered political corruption either. Illegal acts by officeholders constitute political corruption only if the acts are directly related to their official duties.

All forms of government are susceptible to political corruption. Forms of corruption vary, but include bribery, extortion, cronyism, nepotism, patronage, graft, and embezzlement. While corruption may facilitate criminal enterprise such as drug trafficking, money laundering, and trafficking, it is not restricted to these organized crime activities. In some nations corruption is so common that it is expected when ordinary businesses or citizens interact with government officials. The end-point of political corruption is a kleptocracy, literally "rule by thieves".

What constitutes illegal corruption differs depending on the country or jurisdiction. Certain political funding practices that are legal in one place may be illegal in another. In some countries, government officials have broad or not well defined powers, and the line between what is legal and illegal can be difficult to draw.

ECONOMIC IN-JUSTICE:

Economic injustice involves the state's failure to provide individuals with basic necessities of life, such as access to adequate food and housing, and its maintenance of huge discrepancies in wealth. In the most extreme cases of misdistribution, some individuals suffer from poverty while the elite of that society live in relative luxury. Such injustice can stem from unfair hiring procedures, lack of available jobs and education, and insufficient health care. All of these conditions may lead individuals to believe that they have not received a "fair share" of the benefits and resources available in that society. [6]

Poverty :

Poverty in Pakistan is an increasing social problem and represents the critical challenge to be addressed by the Government of Pakistan. It is estimated that about 32% of Pakistan's population are below the food poverty line rising from a level of 26% in 1988 (GoP, 2002), and about 44% are below the poverty line on the human poverty index (UNDP, 2002). The implication here is that a significant proportion of Pakistan's population does not have adequate levels of food, access to basic services and opportunities and hence are particularly vulnerable to economic, environmental and political shocks. Add to this the fact that 65% of Pakistan's population lives in rural areas and it is here that the bulk of Pakistan’s poor (about two-thirds) are found.

More importantly, it has now become increasingly apparent that a critical dimension of poverty has not been given sufficient attention..

TERRORISM:

Terrorism is another cause of underdevelopment, where terrorism exists the process of development stopped. Foreign investments, trade, and exchange of goods & services which are the keys for underdeveloped states are stopped because of terrorists activities.

Terrorism is a controversial term with no internationally agreed single definition. There are however several International conventions on terrorism with somewhat different definitions. In one modern sense, it is violence against civilians to achieve political or ideological objectives by creating fear. Most common definitions of terrorism include only those acts which are intended to create fear (terror), are perpetrated for an ideological goal (as opposed to a lone attack), and deliberately target or disregard the safety of non-combatants. Some definitions also include acts of unlawful violence and war.

Terrorism has been used by a broad array of political organizations in furthering their objectives; both right-wing and left-wing political parties, nationalistic, and religious groups, revolutionaries and ruling governments.

ILLITERACY:

Literacy is defined as persons aged 15 or above who can “read” and “write”.According to this definition, Pakistanis officially reported to have 50% literacy rate. Which means half of its population is illiterate. With such family backgrounds, inflation, poverty and child labor this rate is expected to increase in future. Even for those who are termed as “Literate” are only able to read and write, which in today’s technology oriented world is still considered as illiteracy. Majority of the people forming the top controlling tier is almost unaware of technologies and technical mindset. Thus, causing the country to adopt the new technologies at a snail’s speed.

Agriculture, the main occupation:

Most under developed countries are predominantly agricultural. A great maturity of population is engaged in agriculture and allied occupations. This excessive dependence is due to the fact that non-agricultural occupations have not grown at a rate compared with the increase in population. Hence, the growing labour force has to be absorbed in agriculture sector.

Technical backwardness:

Under developing countries are also in the backward state of technology which is reflected high cost of production, high labour output and capital output rates, general low productivity, unskilled and untrained workers, thus, it may be pointed out that technological backwardness is not only the cause of economic backwardness but it is also the result of it.

External Resources dependence:

The international trade, political activities and other economic activities are under the influence of other advanced countries in less developed countries. Their development plans are financed by the loans giving countries: these plans are made to serve the interests of foreign countries. So, poor nations are loans and grants receiving nations.

Rare Collection:

The developing countries do not have such a huge capital or investment that they can produce large number of basic needs of life. Rate of production is also low in developing countries. It is due to rare collection in the country.

Inadequate infrastructure:

To enhance the process of economic development, proper infrastructure is needed which is not available in poor economies. In these nations: roads, transport, telecommunication, sanitation, health and education facilities are not at their best level. Government has reserved an amount of Rs,133 billions to develop the infrastructure.

Social Aspects:

Under developed countries have also some factors such as joint family system, cast system, cultural and religious views, beliefs and values that badly affect their economic development.32.17% population is working population and remaining 67.83% population is depending on them in Pakistan.

Trade deficit:

Undeveloped countries usually exports raw material but import finished goods. The price of raw material is low but the price of finished goods is high. So, balance of payment is unfavorable. In Pakistan, deficit balance of trade was $ 3.5 billion in 2009.

Influence of feudal lords:

In lower developed nations, the poor class is under the influence of feudal lords and tribal heads. The feudal lords want to keep the people backward and do not appreciate the development of the poor. About 50.8% poor borrow from land lords and 57.4% poor are working for feudal lords without wages in Pakistan.

Circle of poverty:

The main cause of under developed countries remaining poor and under developed is that they are caught up in the vicious circle of poverty. It is because of their per capita income is low, low saving and investment, lack of capital, low purchasing power, low productivity thus the vicious circle is completed and a country remain poor because it is poor.

CONCLUSION:

The reason behind the underdevelopment of underdeveloped states is the lack of determination, if people and the Government work together for the better future of their nation they can do, but problem is this who to start and where to start because the system is very weak. I believe developed states not guide properly to underdeveloped nations, developed nations take them as their competitor. Yes, underdeveloped states can be developed with the help of proper utilization of wealth, resources, and labor. The main focus of underdeveloped states should be on the education of their people, because educated people and skilled people can play the fruitful role in the development of nation.