GCSE AQA Geography Section B: The Changing Economic World

It is the progress in economic growth, use of technology and improving welfare that a country has made.

The difference in development between more and less developed countries

The value of the output of goods and services produced in a country in a year, including money that leaves and enters the country.

The GNI divided by the population of country, aka as GNI per capita.

The number of babies born per 1000 people per year.

The number of deaths per 1000 people per year.

The number of deaths of infants under age 1 per 1000 live births in a given year.

The average number of people for each doctor.

The percentage of a country's people who can read and write.

The percentage of people who can get clean drinking water.

The average period that a person may expect to live.

The combination of measures means that a country's HDI value tells you about both the country's level of economic development and the quality of life for people who live there, between 0 and 1.

It's an average as variations within the country do not show up

As a country develops some aspects develop before others making it seem more developed than it actually is

HIC's are the wealthiest countries in the world, where the GNI per head is high

e.g. UK, USA

LIC's are the poorest countries in the world, where the GNI per head is very low

e.g. Somalia, Uganda

NEE's are rapidly getting richer as their economy moves from being based on primary industry to secondary industry

e.g. BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) + MINT (Mexico, Indonesia, Nigeria and Turkey)

It's a model that indicates what will happen to a society or country's population. It's based on birth rate, death rate, and the total population.

when birth rate is higher than dead rate, so population grows

when the death rate is higher than the birth rate

• least developed

• high birth rate which is fluctuating as there's no contraception

• lots of children as infant mortality rate is high

• high death rate which is fluctuating due to poor healthcare/famine and life expectancy is low

• e.g. tribes in Brazil

• not very developed, LIC zone

• high birth rate as economy is based on agriculture so people have children to work on farms

• lower death rate as better healthcare increases

• e.g. Gambia

• more developed, NEE zone

• birth rate falls rapidly as the use of contraception increases + more women work instead of having children/ economy changes from farming to manufacturing so fewer children are needed for manual labour

• improved healthcare means that the death rate falls and life expectancy increases

• e.g. India

• most developed, HIC zone

• low birth rates as people expect a high standard of living and may have dependent elderly relatives so there is not enough money available for children

• healthcare is good so death rate is low and life expectancy is high

• e.g. UK and Japan

1. A Poor Climate

• varied climates where not much will grow meaning less food, undernourishment have a low quality of life

2. Poor Farming Land

• steep or infertile land, limited crop production leading to malnourishment

3. Few Raw Materials

• limited raw materials, less exports, no development money

• some countries have resources, no money to exploit them

4. Lots of Natural Disasters

• money spent on rebuilding, low quality of life

1. Poor Trade Links

• poor trade links = limited money made, less to spend on development

2. Lots of Debt

• money has to be repaid with interest, less money for development

3. An Economy Based on Primary Products

• countries that export primary products tend to be less developed because they're sold for less profit than manufactured goods

Colonisation

• European countries colonised many countries in Asia, Africa, Australasia and America between the 16th and 20th centuries removing raw materials and sold back manufactured goods meaning profits went to colonisers not the colonised countries, increasing inequality

• prevented countries from developing their own industries

Conflict

• war/civil wars slow development, money spent on war

• war contributes to decreased healthcare, higher infant mortality rates and a decline in literacy rates

Wealth

• people in more developed countries = obtain higher incomes = varied standard of living

• in 2017, the richest 10% of Kenya's population earned, on average, 23x more than the poorest 10%

Health

• HIC's live longer, e.g. the UK's life expectancy is 81, but Chad is on 53

• in 2016, diarrhoea is estimated to have killed over 1.4 million people in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa

International Migration

• people from LIC's/NEE's move to HIC's to escape conflict or to improve their quality of life

• e.g. 130000+ people move from mexico (NEE) the the USA (HIC) legally each year in search of better jobs + quality of life

• migrant workers contribute to the economies of HIC's they move to instead of the LIC's they leave further widening the development gap

Investment, Aid, Fair trade, Using Intermediate Technology, Micro-finance Loans, Industrial Development, Debt Relief

• FDI (foregin-direct investment)is where people buy property in another country or invest

• increases access to finance, technology + expertise,

• improves the services

• e.g. between 1987 and 2018, Vietnam received FDI worth more than US $182 billion , developed motorbike manufacturing and telecommunications

• 2018-19, UK provided £180+ million to South Sudan funding 17 projects, improving access to water, healthcare and education

• can be wasted by corrupt governments/ runs out

• have to pay producers a fair price + premium extra

• 2016, fair trade tea farmers in Malawi used some of their premium to expand their local hospital, build a new school and install a pipeline for clean water

• tiny proportion of the extra money reaches the producers, rest boosts retailers' profits

• affordable and simple tools, machines and systems that improve quality of life

• e.g. solar-powered LED light bulbs used in parts of Nepal compared to polluting kerosene lamps

• small loans are given to LIC's to start their own businesses becoming financially independent

• Amhara region of Ethiopia, benefited from higher incomes, invested in more livestock

• can cause problems by encouraging people to get into debt but it's not clear that it can reduce poverty on a large scale

• agriculture makes up a large portion of the economy developing industry boosting GNI and development, as productivity, skills and infrastructure are improved

• some/all of country's debt is cancelled, interest rates lowered, country has more money for development

• Zambia had $4 billion of debt cancelled in 2005, in 2006, the country had enough money to start a free healthcare scheme for millions of people in rural areas

De-industrialisation

• UK's industrial base declined as increased automation (machines) led to job losses in secondary sector

• became more expensive in UK to manufacture from cheaper labour abroad, UK factories closed

• manufacturing moved overseas, labour costs are cheaper e.g. M&S manufactures clothes in India and China

• TNC's have moved some of their tertiary/quaternary operations to the UK e.g. Apple employed nearly 6500 people in the UK

• trade is an increasing part of the UK GDP; proportion of UK GDP that comes from foreign trade increased from 38% in 1965 to 62% in 2017

• 1980's, key manufacturing industries had been owned/run by government were privatised e.g. steel and ship-building leading to job losses but increased efficiency

• since 1980's, government carried out lots of deregulation - removing restrictions and taxes on businesses to encourage entrepreneurs and investors to move to the UK attracting tertiary + quaternary industries e.g financial institutions

• factories may release pollution of greenhouse gases + running them + lots of energy + water

• extracting raw materials damages the environment by destroying habitats and releases toxic chemicals into water courses

e.g. Unicorn Group produces various products (bins/floor tiles) in Lisburn, Northern Ireland. Installed solar panels and biomass boilers in its factory, 100% renewable sources, recycling left over steel and plastic

roads: 'smart motorways' with extra lanes e.g. building a new dual carriageway to link the A5 to the M1 near Luton

railways: the proposed HS2 line linking London, Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester increases capacity and allows faster journeys between major English cities

airports: one proposal for a third runway at Heathrow airport allowing an extra 700 planes a day but this would increase air + noise pollution in the area increasing emissions

ports: London Gateway, opened at the mouth of the River Thames in 2013, handles world's largest container ships, hoped it will become a hub for global trade.

Trade: overseas exports are worth over £160 billion per year; links to USA, Europe and Asia are significant

Culture: creative industries means UK culture is exported worldwide e.g. the Shaun the Sheep TV series made by Aardman Animations in Bristol is shown in 170 countries

Transport: Channel Tunnel links UK to France, providing a route to mainland Europe, Heathrow acts as an international hub

Electronic Communications: telephones + internet makes communication easier so strengthening the UK's overseas links

European Union: EU is an economic and political partnership of 27 countries, Goods and people can move freely between EU countries, strengthening links between members but the UK left the EU in 2020.

The Commonwealth: association of 53 states, including the UK and many former colonies promoting cooperation between member countries e.g. through trade/aid

North Somerset

• rural area in south-west England

• population increased 7.8% between 2005-15; many people moved to towns/villages near Bristol

• houses prices rose by 6.7% in 2017-18, pricing out locals but employment/wages are above national average

• congestion with commuters to Bristol and services are oversubscribed + elderly move to this area pressuring healthcare.

South Lakeland, Cumbria

• rural county in north west England including the Lake District National Park

• population decreased by 0.8% from 2005-15 due to a decline in jobs [mainly agriculture]

• In Barrow, shops like Gamestation has closed,

• younger people left, higher proportion of older people, strained medical services and social care; continued decline = schools may close.

• lower wages in north e.g. 2014 avg weekly wage in Huddersfield was 40% lower than in London

• Health is worse in the north e.g. life expectancy for male babies born in Glasgow in 2012 was 72.6 years but in East Dorset it was 82.9 years

• GCSE results are better in the South of England than in the Midlands/North

• However, the north has wealthy areas like parts of Cheshire and the South has high areas of deprivation like Cornwall.

Developing More Powers:

• Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own devolved governments and some powers are being devolved to local councils in England too

• money on schemes to benefit community e.g. developing public transport

• around 50 enterprise zones have been created across England, Scotland and Wales; enterprise zones help:

reduced taxes- business rates are reduced up to 100%

financial benefits: businesses who invest in buildings/equipment reduce future tax bills

improved infrastructure: superfast broadband

e.g. Sheffield City Region Enterprise Zone

2011, UK government approved the creation of the zone; projects that have been set up include:

McLaren Composites Technology Centre: partnered with researchers from University of Sheffield to build facilities for developing cutting edge materials, could bring £100m to local economy

Great Yorkshire Way: a major new road is being built connecting Sheffield City Region with Doncaster Sheffield Airport making it easier to travel

by 2017, created 16 000 jobs, £318 million of investment from private companies

• attracts investment into north, improving transport links between northern cities; plan includes extending the coverage of super fast broadband and spending £70 million on improving schooling

• however, more focused on Manchester than smaller towns and cities in the north, limited development as a whole