Development
What is examined
Development questions test competing definitions and measurements, theories of why poverty persists, and the politics of aid, trade and debt.
Core rules
- Growth is not development. GDP measures output; HDI (UNDP, 1990) combines income, health and education; Gini measures inequality; MPI captures multidimensional poverty.
- Theories: modernization (Rostow) assumes linear stages; dependency (Frank, Prebisch) sees core-periphery extraction; neoliberalism/Washington Consensus favours liberalization, privatization and fiscal discipline; sustainable development integrates environmental limits.
- MDGs (2000-2015) had 8 goals; SDGs (2015-2030) have 17 goals and 169 targets, are universal and not legally binding.
- Aid: ODA; the UN 0.7% GNI target; tied aid, conditionality and fungibility; Paris Declaration (2005) on ownership, alignment, harmonization, results and mutual accountability.
- Trade rules can lock in disadvantage: tariff escalation on processed goods, subsidies, commodity dependence.
Worked example
'To what extent does aid promote development?' Distinguish humanitarian relief, budget support and project aid. Cite gains in health and education but also fungibility, dependency and donor self-interest. Compare Botswana's institutions with Zaire/DRC under Mobutu to show that governance mediates aid. Conclude: aid is conditional on political context, not a cause by itself.
Traps
- Equating GDP growth with development.
- Treating HDI as a complete measure.
- Assuming SDGs are binding.
- Confusing correlation with causation.
- Ignoring colonial legacies and debt service.