DEVELOPMENT :

for development theory are these: What are the causes of economic transformation in human
societies?

What are some of the policies through which governments can stimulate the processes of
economic growth?

The concept of development has encompassed several separate ideas in the past sixty years:-
the idea of modernization of economic and social institutions, the idea of sustained economic
growth within a national economy, the idea of the continuing improvement of the material well-
being of the earth’s human population, the idea of more extensive utilization of the world’s
resources, and the idea of the replacement of “traditional” institutions and values with
“modern” successors.

Development refers to the process of improving the overall well-being of individuals and
societies by enhancing their living conditions, capabilities, and opportunities.
Traditional definitions focused on economic growth (e.g., GDP), while modern definitions
include social, political, and environmental dimensions.

DEVELOPING COUNTRIES :
Nederveen Pieterse He carefully considers the processes of European development, taking a
poststructural, processural approach instead of a static one. He sees the domination of Europe
and the United States as being imperialistic, but unlike Marxists, he does not give primacy to
economics: He recognizes imperialism as (1) being a process of domination; (2) being
characterized by interaction between economics and politics; and (3) always harming the
people in the dominated countries.

With only a few exceptions, such as Ethiopia, Iran, and Thailand (formerly Siam), most of the
world’s developing countries were formerly colonies. While formal colonization

has largely ended, either through the granting of independence or through wars of liberation,
many formerly colonized countries have continued their earlier political-economic
relationships with their former colonial master. This continuation of earlier colonial
politicaleconomic relations is generally referred to as neocolonialism.

Neocolonial relationships have been encouraged by both the International Monetary Fund
(IMF) and the World Bank.

The term developing world refers to countries that are characterized by lower levels of
economic development, infrastructure, industrialization, and quality of life when compared to
developed nations. These countries often face challenges such as poverty, inequality, political
instability, and inadequate access to education and healthcare.
The concept of the developing world is complex and dynamic, with countries often
transitioning between classifications as their economies grow or decline.

Economic Characteristics:
• Low Per Capita Income: Most developing countries have a significant proportion of
their population living on low incomes.
• High Dependence on Agriculture: Agriculture often dominates the economy, with
limited industrialization.
• Economic Vulnerability: Economies are sensitive to global trade fluctuations,
resource prices, and debt crises.
Social Characteristics:
• High Population Growth: Rapid population growth strains resources and
infrastructure.
• Poor Health and Education Indicators: High infant mortality, low life expectancy,
and low literacy rates are common.
• Inequality: Significant disparities exist in income, gender equality, and access to
services.
Political Characteristics:
• Weak Institutions: Governance may be unstable, with corruption and lack of
accountability.
• Conflict and Instability: Many developing countries experience internal conflicts or
political unrest.
• Colonial Legacy: Historical exploitation and resource extraction by colonial powers
have left many developing nations economically disadvantaged.
 Environmental Challenges:
• Developing nations often face issues like deforestation, desertification, and
vulnerability to climate change due to their reliance on natural resources.
• Limited resources and funding hinder adaptation to environmental challenges.

Traditional Definitions:
• Historically, countries were classified as “First World” (developed), “Second World”
(communist states), and “Third World” (developing nations).
• The term "Third World" is now considered outdated and pejorative.
Modern Terms:
• Global South: A term reflecting the geopolitical and economic divide between
developed and developing nations, without negative connotations.
• Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs): A classification used by the World
Bank based on income levels.
• Emerging Economies: Countries experiencing rapid economic growth and
industrialization, such as Brazil, India, and South Africa.

Neoliberal development theory reflects the folk wisdom of neoclassical economic and political
theory. Described as the “Washington Consensus,” this approach to development postulates
that modern economic development requires free markets, effective systems of law, and highly
limited powers of government. The slogan of “Getting the Prices Right” was a rule of thumb
for economic institutional reform in countries receiving advice and assistance from
international institutions. This school of thought places great importance on free trade within
the international economic system. Neoliberal structural adjustment reforms in the 1980s,
enforced through International Monetary Fund and World Bank policies, pushed third-world
governments toward harsh domestic reforms (currency devaluation, reduction of programs
aimed at the poor, elimination of subsidies for rural development, liberalization of trade
practices). Critics have argued that these structural adjustment policies have had the effect of
further impoverishing the poorest of many developing societies.
RISE AND DECLINE
On 20 January 1949, President Harry S. Truman, in his Inaugural Address to Congress, dubbed
the home of more than half the world’s people “underdeveloped areas”. This was the first
time that the word “underdevelopment” (OED 1989, XVIII, 960), which was later to become
a key category ordering global relations, was used by a prominent political figure. he said, we
must embark on a bold new program for making the benefits of our scientific advances and
industrial progress available for the improvement and growth of underdeveloped areas.

Earlier development as linear : the metaphor “development” constructed history as a process

of maturation — society is likened to, say, a flower which develops according to inner laws, in
a continuous and irreversible fashion, towards a final stage of bloom.

economic performance had become the all-encompassing measure of a country’s excellence

only after 1945. Sir Frederick Lugard, the inspirer of British colonial theory in the 1920’s,
still conceived the task of a colonial power as a dual mandate; as both the economic
development of colonial territories for the benefit of industrial countries and as moral
concern for the native populations (Lugard 1922). Economic progress and the welfare of the
natives had been considered two distinct duties, as the “civilizing mission” had comprised both
developing resources such as land, minerals and timber, and elevating the natives to a higher
level of civilization. It was only at the time of Truman that the double mandate collapsed into
one — development. The former distinction between an economic and a moral realm vanished,
a sign of a conceptual shift. From now on, not only resources figured into the development
formula, but people as well. Inversely, the moral concern for people was eclipsed by the
economic concern for growth.

Father child earlier, now differently endowed runners.

New developing, countries onto the racetrack, i.e. into the orbit of the world market; and
secondly, turning them into competent runners, i.e. putting them on a path of sustained growth.

AFTER WW2, US launched — following its own self-image — self-determination, free trade,
democracy, and international cooperation as the core values of a future order. A world was
presented which is held together by economic interdependence and not any longer by political
dominion. Economic strength had taken the place of military power. Development was thus a
conceptual vehicle for American dominance with a liberal face.

the concept of development began to be contested in the 1970’s when attention shifted to
the poor, exposing the failure of growth to benefit the large majority of people. Development
was thus redefined as something transcending growth, as economic growth plus redistribution,
plus participation, or plus human development.
Soon, development meant everything and nothing, the concept ceased to denote anything in
particular, it just connoted good intentions. It had no content, but retained a function: it justified
any action in the name of some higher evolutionary goal.
the controversies turned again and again on the role of economic growth, with a focus on GNP
growth lined up against a focus on social or — later — environmental quality. While the first
focus cherished the positivism of growth, the latter centred on non-economic wealth. While the
first pushed output; the latter cured the consequences.

After the Nonaligned Movement had formed at Bandung in 1955, Development ceased to
be seen as an objective to be achieved in individual countries, but was thought to require a less
hostile international economic structure. Obstacles to development are not just to be found in
domestic habits and institutions, as suggested by the modernization discourse; they now present
themselves as well in the detrimental terms of international trade. This framing of the
development problem was intellectually prepared and further elaborated by the so-called
“dependency theory”. The South opposed itself to the North, a constellation which reached
its highpoint in the 70’s as the oil-exporting countries successfully displayed their collective
market power with regard to the affluent economies.

In the 1980’s, the promise of development received a second blow. While a decade earlier the
persistence of poverty had begun to undermine the concept’s social viability, now the emerging
natural limits to growth cast doubts on its longterm viability. Combustion based on fossil
energy, the core of industrial metabolism, threatened to overburden the atmosphere, and the
growing world economy’s voracity.
Again, a qualifier was attached, defining sustainable development as development “that meets
the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their
own needs”.
by linking ‘sustainable’ to ‘development’, a terrain of semantic ambivalence was created. The
new concept subtly shifted the locus of sustainability from nature to development; while
‘sustainable’ previously had referred to renewable resources, it now referred to development.

SOCIAL ISSUES – like income inequality btw rich n poor country, in poor also btw rich n
poor people. Coming up of middle class.

CULTURAL ISSUE- rise of TV and homogenization.

Withering away of rural people.
Getting off of agraigrain society
growing amounts of material wealth.
People’s interests hardly mattered against the backdrop of grand schemes for resource
mobilization
Rise of individualism
development has aimed at achieving that decisive shift which distinguishes modern civilization
from all others: primacy is not given any longer to the relations between persons and persons,
but to the relations between persons and things

ENV - approximately 20% of the world population consume 80% of the world’s resources.
unequal landholdings or a growing population, may turn ecosystem people into landless and
rootless squatters.

environmental degradation arises from two contradictory settings — one of success and
domination, the other of marginality and powerlessness.

TRANSITION :
Since the mid-1980’s the accelerated rise of globalized markets along with the arrival of an
information based economy profoundly changed the post-war international order. development
thought had concentrated on the transition of nation states from agrarian to industrial societies.
With globalization the coordinates of modernization have changed; the agenda is now
dominated by the shift of power from nation states to transnational markets and from industrial
structures to informational structures.
Goods, money, information, images, people flow across borders, giving rise to a transnational
social space where interactions occur over long distances, sometimes even in real time.
Attention no longer focusses on developing national economies, but either on inserting certain
players successfully into the world market or on securing livelihoods for local communities.
Likewise, the agents of development change. While previously the state was expected to be the
engine of development, several new agents, all of them moving largely irrespective of borders,
now diminish the role of the state. In this vein, private foreign investment has overtaken public
assistance, television imagery has superseded national narratives, and NGO’s have shouldered
many development projects. With the state moving out of focus, the development concept looks
strangely out of place in the era of globalization.

Committed to promoting the insertion of RICH industries and middle classes into global
markets, RICH consider the noncompetitive social majority a liability rather than a boon.

the dividing line, if there is any, in the world of globalization does not primarily run between
Northern and Southern countries, but the line separates the global middle class on the one side
and the excluded social majority on the other

THEORIES: -

Walt Whitman Rostow’s Stages of Economic Growth is one of the most influential theories
of economic development, presented in his 1960 book, "The Stages of Economic Growth: A
Non-Communist Manifesto." Rostow’s theory outlines a linear path that societies follow as they
transition from traditional to modern economies. It is grounded in modernization theory and
reflects the dominant Cold War-era view of development as a process of industrialization and
capitalism.

The Five Stages of Economic Growth

Traditional Society:
The economy is predominantly agrarian and subsistence-based.
 There is limited technology and scientific knowledge.
Social structures are hierarchical, often based on tradition or kinship.
Trade and markets are minimal or localized.
Key Limitations:
Limited productivity due to outdated technology and practices.
Resistance to change due to cultural or traditional beliefs.
Preconditions for Take-Off (The Transitional Stage):
External influences (e.g., trade, exploration, or colonization) introduce new
ideas, markets, and technologies.
There is an accumulation of surplus, often through improved agricultural
practices.
Investments in infrastructure, such as transportation, communication, and
education, begin.
Entrepreneurial class starts emerging.
Significance:
A shift begins from a subsistence economy to one that supports larger-scale
production and trade.
The stage sets the foundation for sustained economic growth.
Take-Off:
Rapid industrialization and technological innovation occur.
Investment in manufacturing and infrastructure grows exponentially.
Political and social institutions begin to adapt to new economic realities.
Growth becomes self-sustaining as industries expand and profits are
reinvested.
Key Drivers:
High savings and investment rates.
The emergence of key industries, often fueled by exports.

Drive to Maturity:
The economy diversifies, with industries moving beyond initial areas of
specialization.
Technology spreads across all sectors, increasing productivity and
efficiency.
Living standards improve as economic gains are distributed more widely.
 Urbanization accelerates, and the workforce becomes more skilled and
educated.
Time Frame:
Rostow estimated this stage could last 40–60 years as economies build
resilience and complexity.
Age of High Mass Consumption:
The economy achieves a high standard of living for most citizens.
Consumption patterns shift toward durable goods (e.g., cars, electronics)
and luxury items.
Service industries dominate, and industrial sectors decline in relative
importance.
The state may prioritize welfare programs and investments in social
infrastructure.
Key Features:
Economic growth enables a focus on social well-being and leisure.
Income distribution improves as the middle class expands.

Rostow’s Assumptions
1. Linear Progress:
o Societies move through these stages sequentially, and progress is inevitable
with the right policies and conditions.
2. Western Model of Development:
o Rostow’s model is heavily based on the historical experience of Western Europe
and the U.S., which he views as a universal path for development.
3. Economic Growth as Central:
o Rostow emphasizes industrialization and economic growth as the ultimate
measures of development.

Criticisms of Rostow’s Model

1. Eurocentric and Western Bias:
o The model assumes that all societies can and should follow the Western path of
industrialization and capitalism, ignoring cultural and historical differences.
2. Neglect of Structural Inequalities:
 o Rostow’s theory overlooks the global power imbalances (e.g., colonialism,
dependency) that constrain the development of many countries.
3. Overemphasis on Economic Factors:
o Critics argue that development involves more than just economic growth, such
as social equity, political freedom, and environmental sustainability.
4. Linear and Deterministic:
o Not all countries follow the same path, and development often involves
setbacks, nonlinear progress, and unique trajectories.
5. Overlooks Global Interdependence:
o Rostow’s theory doesn’t adequately address how core-periphery relationships
(as explained in Dependency Theory) affect development outcomes.

Critical of the neoliberal consensus is an influential group of development theorists who

emphasize the centrality of human well-being in development theorizing and the crucial role
that public policies and expenditures play in successful efforts to improve the well-being of the
poor in developing societies. Amartya Sen:

Amartya Sen’s Capabilities Approach is a philosophical and practical framework for

assessing human well-being and guiding development. It shifts the focus from traditional
economic indicators like GDP to the real freedoms and opportunities people have to live the
lives they value.

Key Elements of Amartya Sen's Capabilities Approach

1. Functionings:

o Functionings refer to the achievements of a person, i.e., what they manage to do

or be. Examples include being healthy, having shelter, being educated, or
participating in community activities.

o Functionings are closely related to a person's quality of life.

2. Capabilities:
 o Capabilities represent the freedoms or opportunities to achieve various
functionings. They reflect the range of choices available to a person, not just the
outcomes they achieve.

o For instance, someone might be physically able to work, but if they are denied
access to employment opportunities, their capability is limited.

3. Development as Freedom:

o Sen argues that development is not merely about economic growth but about
expanding people’s real freedoms to make choices that they value.

o Freedom includes both instrumental freedoms (e.g., access to healthcare,

education, and political participation) and intrinsic freedoms (the value of
freedom itself as part of well-being).

4. The Role of Agency:

o Sen emphasizes the importance of people being agents of change in their own
lives. Development should not impose outcomes but should empower
individuals to make their own decisions.

o Agency also highlights the need for participatory decision-making processes in

development.

5. Critique of Traditional Development Metrics:

o Sen criticizes reliance on GDP or income per capita as sole measures of

development. These metrics often ignore critical aspects of human well-being,
such as social inclusion, health, and education.

o The Human Development Index (HDI), which includes health, education, and
income dimensions, was inspired by Sen’s approach.

6. Plurality of Values:

o Different individuals value different kinds of lives, and the capabilities

approach respects this diversity. The goal is not to prescribe what people should
choose but to ensure they have the freedom to choose from a wide range of
valuable options.

7. Social Justice and Inequality:

 o Sen’s approach is deeply concerned with addressing inequalities, as unequal
access to capabilities often limits opportunities for marginalized groups.

o For example, women and disadvantaged communities may face systemic

barriers that restrict their capabilities even when economic resources are
available.

Practical Applications

Sen’s Capabilities Approach has influenced policy and development strategies worldwide:

• Human Development Index (HDI): Sen’s ideas inspired the UN to adopt the HDI as
a more comprehensive measure of development.

• Education and Healthcare Policies: Focus has shifted to improving access to these
essential services, recognizing their role in expanding capabilities.

• Poverty Measurement: The approach highlights the multidimensional nature of

poverty, including lack of access to education, healthcare, and political freedoms.

MARTHA NUSSBAUM

Nussbaum extended Sen's work by proposing a list of central capabilities necessary for a
dignified and flourishing life, such as life, bodily health, emotions, practical reason, and
affiliation.

She emphasizes the importance of recognizing human diversity, including the challenges
faced by women, persons with disabilities, and marginalized communities, in development
discourse.

These both argue for placing a nuanced theory of human development grounded in capabilities
and functionings at the center of development policy. And they argue for the crucial role that
public policy has in creating the human welfare infrastructure that is essential for the successful
alleviation of destitution: public health, nutrition, free education, and democratic freedoms. On
this view, the narrow conception of the role of the state associated with the neoliberal approach
almost inevitably implies further degradation of the conditions of life of the least-well-off in
the developing world. A concrete achievement of this approach is the creation and maintenance
of the Human Development Index by the United Nations

Development Program. This index is designed to provide a measure of economic development

that goes beyond measuring growth of per-capita income, and instead

focuses on measures that are correlated with quality of life: health, longevity, and educational
attainment, for example.

critical voices within development theory throughout its history.

DEPENDENCY THEORY

Dependency Theory is a framework that seeks to explain the persistent underdevelopment of

certain countries and regions, particularly in the Global South, as a result of their economic and
political relationships with wealthier, industrialized nations in the Global North. Emerging in
the 1950s and 1960s as a response to modernization theories of development, Dependency
Theory argues that underdevelopment is not a stage to be overcome but a product of the
historical and structural inequalities embedded in the global economic system.

Key Concepts of Dependency Theory

1. Core and Periphery:

o Dependency Theory divides the world into two main categories: the core and
the periphery.

▪ The core consists of developed, industrialized countries that dominate

the global economy (e.g., the United States, Western Europe, Japan).

▪ The periphery includes less-developed countries that provide raw

materials, cheap labor, and markets for the core's finished goods.

o A semi-periphery exists between these two, with some characteristics of both

(e.g., emerging economies like Brazil or India).

2. Unequal Exchange:
 o Economic transactions between core and periphery countries are fundamentally
unequal. Peripheral countries export low-value raw materials or agricultural
products and import high-value finished goods from the core.

o This unequal exchange reinforces dependency and prevents peripheral

economies from developing diversified and self-sufficient industries.

3. Historical Context:

o Dependency Theory is rooted in the history of colonialism, during which

colonial powers extracted wealth from colonized regions, disrupting indigenous
economic systems and creating long-term dependency.

o After colonialism, neo-colonialism continued this dependency through

international trade, investment, and political influence.

4. The Role of Multinational Corporations:

o Multinational corporations (MNCs) are seen as instruments of the core countries

that extract resources, exploit labor, and repatriate profits from the periphery.

o This perpetuates a cycle of underdevelopment in peripheral countries, as profits

are not reinvested locally.

5. Dependence on Foreign Aid and Debt:

o Peripheral countries often rely on foreign aid, loans, and investments from core
countries or international financial institutions like the IMF or World Bank.

o This financial dependency often comes with conditions that favor the interests
of the core, such as austerity measures or trade liberalization policies, which can
exacerbate underdevelopment.

6. Structural Barriers to Development:

o Dependency theorists argue that the global capitalist system is designed to keep
peripheral countries dependent and subordinate.

o Efforts to industrialize or modernize in the periphery are often undermined by

structural constraints, such as unfavorable terms of trade or the control of key
industries by foreign powers.
Key Thinkers of Dependency Theory

1. Raúl Prebisch:

A key proponent of Dependency Theory, Prebisch argued that the terms of trade between
primary commodity exporters (periphery) and industrialized countries (core) were inherently
unequal and deteriorated over time, disadvantaging the periphery. the relationship between
developed and developing countries was exploitive
2. Andre Gunder Frank:

o Frank coined the term "the development of underdevelopment," emphasizing

how the historical exploitation of the periphery by the core created and
maintained underdevelopment.

o He rejected modernization theories that claimed all nations would eventually

achieve development by following the same path as Western countries.

3. Andre Gunder Frank, who introduced the concept of dependent development.

According to Frank, development strategies promoted by the wealthy countries were
designed to ensure that the “developing” countries remained in a subordinate position.
o

4. Immanuel Wallerstein:

o Wallerstein expanded Dependency Theory into the World-Systems Theory,

which views the global economy as a single system with core, periphery, and
semi-periphery countries interacting within a capitalist world-economy.

5. Wallerstein’s world-system theory beginning in the sixteenth century, capitalists

backed by “strong states” spread outward from Western Europe to control the world,
obtaining cheap labor and raw materials through trade relationships that benefited those
in the European— and later U.S.—“core” countries. Wallerstein posits three levels of
economic development represented by concentric “rings,” moving from the advanced
“core” countries to peripheral countries, with the “semi-periphery” located in between.

It views that the world economy since 1945 has been con- structed around a set of institutions
that systematically disadvantage the South for the benefit of the North, by structuring
production and trade in such a way as to limit economic growth in the third world. This
approach emphasizes structural inequalities, systemic institutional disadvantages,

patterns of unequal exchange, and resulting uneven development.

cultural critics of modernization - ARTURO ESCOBAR

is a central voice in this body of criticism. Arturo Escobar is a prominent cultural critic of
modernization and development. His work challenges traditional development theories,
particularly those rooted in modernization and economic growth paradigms, by critiquing their
cultural, ideological, and epistemological foundations. Escobar's critiques focus on how
development discourses have historically marginalized local knowledge systems and imposed
Western-centric ideas of progress on non-Western societies.

Key Contributions of Arturo Escobar

1. Development as a Discourse:

o Escobar’s most influential work, "Encountering Development: The Making and

Unmaking of the Third World" (1995), argues that development is not just a
set of policies or economic practices but a discourse.

o He contends that after World War II, development became a dominant narrative
constructed by Western nations to define and control the "Third World." This
discourse framed non-Western societies as "underdeveloped" and in need of
Western intervention.

2. Critique of Modernization Theory:

o Escobar challenges modernization theory, which views development as a

linear, universal process where "traditional" societies must evolve to resemble
"modern" Western nations.

o He argues that this approach ignores the diversity of cultures and knowledge
systems, erasing indigenous practices and ways of life.

3. Hegemony of Western Development:

 o According to Escobar, development has been a tool for the global hegemony
of Western powers. It imposes Western notions of progress, industrialization,
and economic growth, often at the expense of local autonomy, cultural diversity,
and ecological sustainability.

o The language of development (e.g., terms like "poverty," "backwardness,"

"progress") is itself a form of power, shaping how societies perceive themselves
and their place in the world.

4. Cultural Politics of Development:

o Escobar emphasizes the cultural dimensions of development, critiquing how

development practices disrupt local identities, traditions, and worldviews.

o He highlights how development projects often dismiss local knowledge and

prioritize Western scientific and technological solutions, leading to alienation
and dependency.

5. Post-Development Theory:

o Escobar is a leading figure in post-development theory, which questions the

very idea of development as a universal goal.

o Post-development advocates for alternative ways of imagining social change

that are rooted in local cultures, ecologies, and knowledge systems, rather than
Western models of growth and modernization.

6. Focus on Local Resistance:

o Escobar examines how local communities resist development projects and

reclaim their agency. He highlights grassroots movements that reject imposed
modernization and advocate for alternative ways of living that align with their
cultural and ecological contexts.

7. Political Ecology:

o Escobar's work is also deeply connected to political ecology, exploring the

intersections of development, environment, and culture.

o He critiques how development projects often lead to environmental degradation

and disrupt the relationships between communities and their ecosystems.
Core Arguments in "Encountering Development"

1. Invention of the Third World:

o Escobar argues that the concept of the "Third World" was invented through
development discourse, constructing certain nations as backward and in need of
intervention.

o This narrative legitimized the imposition of Western practices, technologies,

and institutions on non-Western societies.

2. Mechanisms of Control:

o Development programs, institutions (e.g., the World Bank, IMF), and experts
became mechanisms for controlling and managing the so-called Third World.

o These mechanisms often perpetuate dependency and inequality rather than

addressing root causes of poverty or inequality.

3. Failures of Development:

o Escobar critiques the failures of traditional development projects, noting how

they often exacerbate inequality, disempower local communities, and destroy
traditional livelihoods.

This perspective offers a critique of the discourse and presuppositions of development thinking
in the West: the presumed primacy of Western values, the unquestioned importance

of consumerism, the teleology associated with the concept of “modernization,” and other ways
in which the values and assumptions of development theory reflect unquestioned

ethnocentrism and universalism.

PYE – IDEA OF DEVELOPMENT

EQUALITY: Mass participation and popular involvement in pol activity. Active citizen.
CAPACITY: of pol system by which it can give output. Govt performance as welfare agency.
Rational administration. Secular orientation
DIFFERENTIATION: diffusion and specialization of structure.

RIGGS: Integreated concpt of PD with env. He viewed development as growing understanding

of both construct and resource of env.
‘both cultural and humn env need to be added to physical env’