What is development?

Development is how far a country has grown economically and how far its people's quality of life has improved. Countries sit on a spectrum:

• ACs — advanced countries (e.g. UK, Japan).
• EDCs — emerging and developing countries (e.g. Brazil, India).
• LIDCs — low-income developing countries (e.g. Ethiopia, Nepal).

Key idea: development is more than money — it includes health, education and quality of life, not just wealth.

How is development measured?

Two key measures OCR names:

• GNI per capita — the average income per person (an economic measure). Higher GNI usually means a more developed country.
• Human Development Index (HDI) — a social + economic measure combining income, life expectancy and education into a score from 0 to 1.

Single measures can mislead (e.g. an average income hides inequality), so composite measures like HDI give a fuller picture.

Watch out: GNI per capita is an average. A country can have a high average income but still huge inequality between rich and poor.

Which measure?

Why are some countries richer?

Uneven development has physical and human causes:

• Physical — landlocked location, poor climate (drought), natural hazards, few resources, tropical diseases.
• Human — history of colonialism, poor governance, conflict, and unfair trade.

Some factors trap countries in poverty:

• Debt — repaying loans leaves little to invest in development.
• Trade — relying on a few low-value primary exports whose prices swing.
• Political unrest — conflict destroys infrastructure and deters investment.

Rostow's model of development

Rostow's model suggests countries pass through five stages of economic growth, from a traditional society based on farming, through "take-off" and investment, to a modern economy of high mass consumption.

It is useful for comparing a country's journey, but is criticised for assuming every country develops the same Western way and ignoring colonialism and trade barriers.

Millennium Development Goals (MDGs): global targets (2000–2015) to cut poverty, improve health and education — OCR asks how far these were met for your chosen LIDC.

Match the term to its meaning

Tap a term on the left, then tap its correct description on the right.

Case study: an LIDC

OCR requires one LIDC in depth. A widely-taught example is Ethiopia:

• Development so far: one of Africa's fastest-growing economies, but still an LIDC with low GNI per capita and a mostly rural population dependent on farming (coffee is a key export).
• Global connections: reliance on primary commodities (coffee) makes income unstable; TNC investment and Chinese-funded infrastructure (roads, railways, the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam) aim to boost growth.
• Strategies: compare a top-down project (e.g. a large dam funded by government/TNCs) with a bottom-up project (e.g. a small charity well or farming scheme run with local people).

Aid and trade

Two ways to boost development:

• Trade — selling goods abroad brings income. Moving from low-value primary exports (raw materials) to higher-value manufactured goods raises earnings. Fair trade guarantees producers a fairer price.
• Aid — help from other countries/charities.
  • Top-down aid: large projects (dams, roads) managed by government/big organisations.
  • Bottom-up aid: small, local schemes (wells, schools) run with communities — often more sustainable.
• Debt relief — cancelling debt frees money for development.

Top-down or bottom-up?

Your turn — commodity reliance

Higher or lower development?

Which does each indicator usually suggest?

Top-down or bottom-up?

Classify each development strategy.

Classifying countries

Why income can mislead

The key ideas to know

You've covered the whole OCR Dynamic Development topic. Press Finish to see your score.