Understanding Global Underdevelopment and Decolonization
Understanding Global Underdevelopment
Underdevelopment is a set of circumstances that make life miserable for a very large population. Underdevelopment possesses characteristics that define this situation.
Dependence Abroad
The economy of these countries is based on the export of raw materials and importing manufactured goods. This creates significant inequalities in the distribution of wealth. The World Bank developed a classification of countries based on per capita income:
- Low-income countries: $765 or less per inhabitant (e.g., Burundi and Kiribati).
- Middle-income countries: Between $765 and $9,386 (e.g., Senegal and Seychelles).
- High-income countries: More than $9,386 (e.g., Croatia and Luxembourg).
The most important aspect is not just the inequalities *between* countries, but the huge difference in the *internal* distribution of income, where a few families possess unimaginable wealth.
Undernourishment and Disease
In these countries, there is barely enough food to alleviate hunger. Diets have serious shortcomings in protein, minerals, and vitamins. Poor alimentation, lack of doctors, and a very basic health system contribute to epidemics and high mortality. The extent of AIDS in equatorial Africa is a misfortune, adding to this situation.
Predominance of the Agricultural Sector
The lack of capital and infrastructure prevents the advancement of agriculture, keeping it at a subsistence level. The economic base is agricultural, determined by the area cultivated and the number of people devoted to it.
- The survival of very primitive farming techniques leads to low yields.
- Low yields and old techniques prevent the agricultural revolution.
- Necessary improvements are not introduced due to a lack of capital.
Mining and Energy Sources
The exploitation of resources has increased due to the depletion of deposits and cheap transport. Oil-producing countries raised prices after the Yom Kippur War, and prices stabilized after Camp David. The occasion was the global supply of oil.
Industry and Trade
The Third World has not fully experienced the Industrial Revolution. The installation of a strong industrial structure requires large investments, a population with an adequate level of preparation, and a market that generates sufficient initial demand. Other countries have seen benefits reinvested in the industrial sector, leading to growing prosperity.
Decolonization of Africa
The process began in Africa in 1951 with the independence of Libya and continued with the emancipation of Namibia. The momentum of unity and cooperation among countries began in 1963 with the creation of the Organization of African Unity (OAU). Unlike Asia, decolonization was greatly accelerated, and independence for most countries occurred between 1957 and 1962. The United Kingdom, after the conflicts faced in India, realistically agreed to decolonization. France, however, intended to reconstruct its empire.
Prolonged Conflict: Algeria and France
The Algerian War began in 1954 and concluded in 1962, when most of the continent was already independent. The manifesto of the Algerian people created the National Liberation Front (FLN), which, since 1954, started the armed struggle and formed the Provisional Government of the Algerian Republic. France practiced a war of extermination and the tactic of “scorched earth” to prevent peasant support. The FLN used land and guerrilla tactics with the complicity of the rural populations. In 1962, the French left Algeria, and independence was proclaimed. Algeria became a democratic, popular, and socialist Arab republic.