CHAPTER THREE

THEORIES OF DEVELOPMENT AND

UNDERDEVELOPMENT

Lecture Notes
By: Adafrew. A (MA, Governance and Development)
2015 E.C
Chapter Three
Theories of Development and Underdevelopment

Unit Objectives
 After completing this unit, you are expected to:
 Analyze the different features of the modernization
theory.
 Explain the Marxian view of development.
 Explore the different discourses under the international
dependency revolution on development.
 Discuss the theoretical standpoint of the neo-
liberal counterrevolution on development.
 Explain the concepts of alternative development and post
development
 The Modernization School of Thought
 Has roots from the historical North-South relations.
 Since the late 1940’s, two related, but non-identical discourses of
dev’t theories emerged.
 Modernization theory and the neo-liberal dev’t doctrine.

 In the 1950’s and 1960’s, newly independent states came into

existence and hence the conceptualization of “modernization

process” became central.
 Theories of modernization are based on the assumption that

societal change is a linear process involving the

transformation of traditional and agrarian societies into
modern industrial societies.
… The Modernization Theory
 It was optimist/idealist about the prospect of dev’t in the South.
 It involves issues of economic growth, development of social
institutions, political change, and psychological factor in the South.
 It offers an explanation of how and why change take place?
 It bases itself on the assumption that the capitalist model is
universally applicable.
 Viewed the process of dev’t as a series of successive stages of
economic growth through which all countries must pass.
 Saving, investment and foreign aid were necessary to enable Third
World nations to proceed along an economic growth path that had
been followed by the more developed countries.
 Development thus became synonymous with rapid economic growth.
 … The Modernization Theory
 Proponents argue that Third World countries should follow a
path of political and economic dev’t traveled by the advanced
societies.
 According to this theory, dev’t in developing countries would
come with innovations, capital, technology, modern ideas,
entrepreneurship, democratic institutions, and values from the
developed western societies.
 In developing countries, these modernizing factors faced barriers
that hampered dev’t.
 These barriers are traditional, cultural values of the societies of
the South.
 To deal with these barriers, revolution in economic and social
sphere is important.
 Proponents of Modernization Theory

 W. W. Rostow’s Stages of Economic Growth:

 Rostow subscribes some form of evolution.
 All societies go through the same stages of dev’t.
 His model was based up on a detailed analysis of the economic
history of major industrialized societies.
Different Stages Identified by Rostow

i. The Traditional Society

 A traditional society is one whose structure is developed

within the limited production function.

 B/c of the limitation of productivity, these societies had to

devote a very high proportion of their resources to agriculture.

 Flowing from the agriculture system, there was a hierarchical

social structure with relatively narrow scope for vertical

mobility.
 Moreover, family and clan connections played a large role in

social organizations.
Different Stages Identified by Rostow

ii. Preconditions for Take-off

 This stage of growth holds societies in the process of
transition.
 The major characteristics of the traditional society
involves; changes in growth/economy, in politics, social
structure and values.
 This stage initially developed, in a clear marked way, in
Western Europe of the late 17th and early 18th Centuries as
the insights of modern science began to be translated in to
new production functions in both agriculture and industry.
Different Stages Identified by Rostow

iii. The Take-off Stage

 Is the interval when the old blocks and resistances to steady growth are
finally overcome.
 In many societies, technological advancement is the stimulus for take-off.
 The rate of effective investment and saving rise.
 New industries expand rapidly, and used to reinvested in a new plant.
 New industries in turn brings the service sector and a further expansion
of urban areas.
 New techniques spread in agriculture and industry, and agriculture becomes
commercialized.
 The radical change in agricultural productivity is an essential condition for
successful take-off.
Different Stages Identified by Rostow

iv. The Drive to Maturity

 Characterized by a long interval of sustained fluctuating
progress.
 The economy finds itself in the:
 International economy; goods formerly imported are

produced at home,
 New import requirements develop, and new export

commodities are produced.

 The economy becomes increasingly efficient, adapting

rapidly to further technological innovations.

Different Stages Identified by Rostow

v. The Age of High Mass Consumption

 At this stage, the leading sectors shift toward durable
consumers’ goods and services.
 Real income per head/per capita income rose to a point where
a large number of people gained a command over
consumption which transcended basic needs (i.e. food, shelter
and clothing).
 The structure of the working force changed in ways w/c
increased not only the proportion of urban to total population,
but also the proportion of the population working in offices or
in skilled factory job.
Samuel Huntington’s Political Modernization and
Development

 Modernization theory makes its philosophical tenet

in the comparison b/n modern and traditional society.
 The essential difference between the two lies in the
greater control which modern societies have over
natural and social environment.
 This control, in turn, is based on the expansion of
scientific and technological knowledge.
 These differences reflect differences in fundamental
attitudes towards and expectations from the
environment.
Process of Modernization and its Characteristics

i. Modernization is a revolutionary process. This follows directly from the

contrast between modern and traditional society.
ii. Modernization is a complex process. It involves in changes in virtually all
areas human thought and behavior. At a minimum its components include:
industrialization, urbanization, social mobilization, differentiations,
secularization, media expansion, increasing literacy and education, and
expansion of political participation.
iii. Modernization is a systemic process. Changes in one factor are related to
and affect changes in the other factors.
iv. Modernization is a global process. Modernization originated in the
fifteenth- and sixteenth-century Europe, but it has now become a
worldwide phenomenon.
v. Modernization is a lengthy process. The totality of changes which
modernization involves can only be worked out through time.
… Process of Modernization and its Characteristics

vi. Modernization is a phased process. It is possible to

distinguish different levels of phases of modernization through
which all societies will move.
vii. Modernization is a homogenizing process. Traditional
societies have little in common except their lack of
modernity. Modern societies, on the other hand, share basic
similarities.
viii. Modernization is an irreversible process. A society which
has reached certain levels of urbanization, literacy and
industrialization in one decade will not decline substantially
lower levels in the next decade.
ix. Modernization is a progressive process. The traumas of
modernization are many and profound, but in the long run
Criticisms against the Modernization School of
Thought

 Some of the major criticisms waged against the modernization

school are the following.
 Has structural problems; it has uncritically accepted the r/ns
b/n the North and the South.
 It visualized the North as culturally, politically and

economically modern. As a result, it is racist.

 It is Eurocentric. It draws too heavily on American experience
and tends to look at the world from an American point of view.
 It was too optimistic and simplistic. The proponents of the
modernization theory expected that countries of the South can
easily achieve greater economic growth, equity, democracy,
stability, etc… simultaneously and smoothly.
… Criticisms against the Modernization School of
Thought

 It blames only the internal conditions of societies of the

South for their lack of development.
 It disregarded the external factors that have continued to
hamper the development of these groups of countries.
 The modernization theory blindly suggested that the western
model of development is the only path of development that
the South should adopt.
 It ignored other alternative paths to development.
The Marxian Concept of Development

Marxism: A General Overview

 In 1867 Karl Marx published Das Kapital (The Capital), a

work that systematically and historically analyzed the

capitalist system.
 His theories would provide much of the material for

arguments that have opposed development models based on

capitalism and the laissez faire system.
 Marxism is the best-known strand of structuralist thought.

 The ideology put forward by Karl Marx termed as Communist

Ideology advocates that history proceeds by means of a

historical dialectic or clash of opposing ideas (thesis versus
anti-thesis) with a resulting new order (synthesis).
… Marxism: A General Overview

 Marxism also holds that the economic material order

determines political and social relationships. Thus, history, the
current situation, and the future are determined by the
economic struggle, termed dialectical materialism.
 Thus, the material dialectic was transformed from domestic
class struggle into an international struggle between bourgeois
and proletariat.
 According to Marx, the state is a creation and tool of the rich
capitalist class and he holds that the state will no longer exist
once communism is fully realized.
Marxian view of Development

 The Marxian view of development emphasizes the role of classes and

class antagonism in society.
 In this system, vested class interest can inhibit/constrain overall
development of society.
 The question of poverty in society is seen as the exploitation of the poor
working class.
 Property relations in the society create and accentuate the problem of
poverty and development.
 Since land and other productive assets are privately owned and
concentrated in the hands of few, the problem of inequalities remains
unsolved.
 From a Marxist perspective, development is a process of class struggle.
The Continuous Struggle b/n the Bourgeoisie and the
Proletariat Class

 Marx believed that just as the bourgeoisie (the capitalist

middle class) had relied on revolutionary movements to
wrestle power from the nobility, so, too, could the working
class, called the "proletariat," eventually overthrow the
bourgeoisie.
 For Marx, the eventual fall of the bourgeoisie was not only
desirable, it was inevitable.
 He reached this conclusion based on his economic theory of
labor. Specifically, he developed the doctrine of surplus value.
At the heart of the doctrine was the conclusion that the worker
was being robbed.
 According to Marx, the government was a tool used by
capitalists to perpetuate them-selves in power.
 The Inevitable Downfall of Capitalism (Marx)

 Marx believed that the advent of capitalism set in motion its own final
downfall. He reasoned as follows.
 The capitalist system cannot exist without workers.
 As more factories are built, more people will be forced to work in them.
 Thus, under capitalism, the army of workers will continually expand.
 With the expansion of capitalism around the world comes the global creation of a
working class.
 Capital will become concentrated in fewer hands.
 Those bourgeoisies that are unable to compete will be forced to join the
working class or perish.
 This process will continue until one day the proletariat masses will be able to
take control of the system by overthrowing the bourgeoisie, resulting in a
classless society.
 No new class will arise because class arises from economic differences, and
capitalism will have eliminated these differences by making everyone a
proletariat.
 Economic Theories of Marx

 The various economic theories that Marx forwarded are:

 The theory of work,
 The theory of self- alienation,
 The labor theory of value and
 The Theory of surplus value.

A. The Theory of Work

 Marx believed that work is the way in which people might express their

creativity.
 By interacting with nature or labor individuals develop and change their

own character.
 Work is highly associated with the essence of human beings.

 To Marx, work is a form of self-creation.

 In other words, the product of our labor is part of us and something of us is

definitely there in the things we produce through our work.

 … Economic Theories of Marx

B. The Theory of Self-alienation

 Human self-alienation occurs because of three factors. First work is a form of self-creativity
it should be enjoyable. Because the capitalists squeeze every cent of profit from the workers,
they make the conditions of work intolerable.
 Hence instead of enjoying the work, the members of the proletariat grow to hate the very
process by which they could refine their own work.
 Consequently they become alienated from their own selves.
 Secondly, as capitalists exploit the workers in order to produce profit they force the workers
to sell their product and then use that product against the workers to exploit them further.
 This forces the workers to regard their own product as alien and even harmful to them.
 Thirdly, the capitalists are criticized for mechanizing production because this process robs
laborers of their skills and reduces them to little more than feeders of machines. This is the
ultimate alienation.
 In the third factor, Marx claims that socialism was the coming economic system and that it
could produce even more than capitalism which is paradoxical.
… Economic Theories of Marx

C. The Labor Theory of Value

 The labor theory of value is concerned with establishing a standard for
measuring intrinsic value.
 It assumes that there are two kinds of value brought to the production
process.
 Resources, machinery, and finance are one which is termed as constant value. These
when applied to the production of an item cannot add any value greater than their-own
intrinsic worth.
 The labor is the only variable value because only labor produces something of greater
worth than itself. Hence Marx pays tribute to the genius of human creativity. A watch can
be produced by a machine but until human creativity is there the watch will not be a
good one.
 Therefore, the intrinsic value of an object is determined by the amount of labor or human
creativity needed to produce it. The price of an object is determined by supply and
demand. However, the value of the project is determined by the labor time needed for its
production.
 … Economic Theories of Marx

D. Theory of Surplus Value

 It is based on the labor theory of value, w/c is Marx’s most
important discovery.
 Capitalism enslaves the proletariat b/c people have to work to
survive while the capitalist has a monopoly on the means of
production.
 The capitalists will pay their workers only subsistence wages just
enough to feed themselves and their families b/c that much is
necessary to bring them back to work the next day.
 Thus the capitalists pay only meager/insufficient wages
regardless of how much value they may produce.
 … Economic Theories of Marx

 The capitalists by this method force workers to produce an

excess, or surplus value, and they keep that sum for themselves
as profits.
 Actually, this surplus value belongs to the labors.
 But since it is not given to them, the capitalists are exploitative.
 He did not oppose capital as such but he rejected the capitalist.
 He did not condemn profit, he opposed private profit.
 He capital as necessary for production, but he rejected the
notion that it should be controlled by private individuals.
 Capital was created by all and it should be owned by all.
The International Dependency Revolution

 In 1970’s, international dependence model gained increasing

support especially among Third World intellectuals as a result
of a growing disappointment with the modernization theories.
 Within this general approach, there are three major streams of
thought.
 Dependency theory of development,

 The False paradigm model on development and

 The dualistic-development model.

 The Dependency Theory

 Tries to give an explanation on what made the North rich and what
kept the South poor.
 It analyzes/explain the extent to which the political economies of
the South have been exploited by the North and domination of
capitalist countries in the global economy.
 The principal tenet of the dependency theory is that
underdevelopment is not a stage on the road to a capitalist society,
but a condition/symptom of capitalist domination.
 The Dependency Theory

Focuses of the Dependency Theory

 It focuses on the unequal economic and political exchange that

takes place between the developed capitalist countries

(described as the ‘core’) and the South (described as the
‘periphery’).
 Proponents strongly believe that the economies of the periphery

are conditioned by and dependent up on the development and

expansion of the economies of the core.
 Whenever there is growth in one part of the world, it is

compounded by backwardness of the other.

Challenges of Dependency Theory against Modernization Theory

 Dependency theory contests the most fundamental

assumptions of the modernization theory.
 The modernization theory believes that some people are
destined to develop, whereas others are destined to be poor.
 But this assumption is refuted by dependency theory in the
sense that underdevelopment does not result from some
original state of affair.
 The same world historical process that enabled the North to
develop has also underdeveloped others.
Challenges of Dependency Theory against Modernization Theory

 The dependency theory also rejects the claim that the peripheries
should follow the same path of dev’t followed by the core.
 It is argued that there were particular political and economic
conditions that enabled the core to industrialize w/c was based on
the domination/exploitation of natural and human resources in the
colonies.
 The process of colonialism integrated the periphery into the world
division of labor by which the major function of the South remained
in the production of raw materials for the European industries.
 This had facilitated industrialization in the core at the expense of the
periphery.
Assumptions Shared by many Dependency Theorists

Underdevelopment is closely connected with the expansion of

industrialized capitalist countries.
 Development and underdevelopment are different aspects of the

same universal process.

 That universal process is the expansion of industrial capitalism and

the creation of the world division of labor.

 In this division of labor, countries of the periphery are forced to

remain in the production of primary commodities while the core

produces manufactured commodities.
 Underdevelopment cannot be considered as the original state of

affair.
 It is something created by the domination and exploitation of the

North on the South.

The relation between the Core and the Periphery:

 There exists a dependent r/nship b/n the core and the periphery.
 This dependence has three major features. These are:

a. The technological dependence:

b. Dependency on foreign investment and

c. International division of labor.

 The relation between the Core and the Periphery:

The technological dependence:

 Most of the technologies for dev’t are from the West.

 The North determine the price and availability of these

technologies.
 But most of these technologies are capital intensive and

expensive.
 The Third world countries have no option except to borrow

financial capital to obtain these technologies.

 This makes them dependent on external economic forces that are

beyond their control.

 This ultimately weakens the aspiration of dev’t.
 The relation between the Core and the Periphery:

Dependency on Foreign Investment

 This form of dependency happens b/c of d/t reasons.

 To accelerate the dev’t process,

 To access new technologies and
 To gain new markets.

 These have forced countries of the South to adopt

export-led economic policies and strategies.

 They are also forced to produce cheap food for export,

cheap raw materials and cheap cash crops.

 The relation between the Core and the Periphery:

International Division of Labor

 The core remains the major producer and exporter of manufactured

goods and
 The South remain in the production and export of primary goods.

 As a result, there is unequal exchange b/n these groups of

countries.
 Unbalanced terms of trade, b/n the core at the expense of the

periphery.
 This has helped the North to become richer and richer and has

made the South poorer and poorer in a route of time.

Suggested Solution for Third World’s Development

 The third world can break the circle of underdevelopment by:

 Pursuing a policy of import substitution strategy as a means of

autonomous capitalist dev’t.

 Developing indigenous industries in order to prevent the need to

import manufactured goods.

 However, efforts to implement a policy of import substitution have

not proved to be successful.

Because of this reason, many dependency theorists asserted:
 A revolutionary struggles or at least major restructuring of the world

capitalist system are required to free dependent Third World nations

from direct and indirect economic control of Western.
 Some like Samir Amin advocated a self-reliant development strategy.
 Some Dependency Models on Underdevelopment

The False Paradigm Model

 This model contributes to the Third World’s underdevelopment

b/c of:
 Faulty and inappropriate advices provided by developed countries
and donor agencies;
 (uniformed, biased, and ethnocentric international expert advises).
 These sophisticated concepts/theoretical structures often lead to
inappropriate policies.
 While in government policy discussions too much emphasis is
given to such concepts and theoretical structures, desirable
institutional and structural reforms are neglected or given only
cursory attentions.
 … Some Dependency Models on Underdevelopment

The Dualistic-development Thesis

 Dualism is a concept that represents the existence and persistence of increasing

divergences between the rich and the poor nations and rich and the poor people on
various levels.
 Specifically, the concept of dualism embraces four key elements. These are:

 Superiority and Inferiority Co-existence on different sets of conditions

 E.g. the coexistence of modern and traditional methods of production in urban and

rural sectors.
 This coexistence is chronic and not merely transitional. The international

coexistence of wealth and poverty is not simply a historical phenomenon that will be
rectified in time.
 Not only do the degree of ‘superiority’ or ‘inferiority’ fail to show any signs of

diminishing, but they even have an inherent tendency to increase from time to time.
 The interrelations between the ‘superior’ and the ‘inferior’ elements are such that the

existence of the superior element does little of nothing to pull up the inferior element,
let alone trickle-down to it.

Critical Comments on International Dependency
Revolution

 This school of thought suggested that underdevelopment is not the

fault of the least developed countries.
 It is rather the problem of foreign domination and exploitation.
 The dependency theory in particular helped to the redefinition of
the concept of economic development to have a wider perspective.
 Whereas the modernization theories focused on economic growth,
the dependency theories give emphasis to the importance of the
redistribution of economic wealth and social justice.
 Despite such praises, the different theories of the international
dependency school of thought are criticized. Among the dominant
criticisms, the following are the major ones.
 … Critical Comments on International Dependency
Revolution

 These theories attributed all the Third World’s problems to the

external economic factors. They have never been in-ward
looking.
 Modernization theories have always been optimists about the
possibilities of development in the South.
 But theories within the International dependency theory school of
thought have remained pessimists about the possibilities of
development in the South.
 Actually they have their own reasons.
 Andre Gunder Frank, for example argued that Third World
nations produce non-industrial goods and ruled by
unrepresentative governments; they are doomed to continue to be
backward.
 The Neo-Liberal Counterrevolution

An Overview of Neo-Liberal Counterrevolution

Neo-liberalism as the new development orthodoxy/convention is part of a
profound shift in power in the global political economy.
 The economic liberalism that had become the dominant global discourse of

development after the industrial revolution was regarded with great

skepticism.
 The loss of faith in economic liberalism was also a crisis of capitalist

hegemony, in which the fundamentals upon which capitalism depended

were challenged and denied.
 After the last quarter of the 20 th Century, however, liberal principles were

reasserted.
 The re- imposition of the liberal principles-or neo-liberal revolution was

accompanied by a restructuring of the relationship between capital and the

state, and between the state and society, with the aim of restoring the
unregulated operation of the market forces.
Major Argument of the Neo-liberal Counterrevolution

 The central argument of the neo-liberal counterrevolution:

 Underdevelopment results from poor resource allocation due to incorrect
pricing policies and too much government intervention.
 Many writers of this school of thought argue that it is this very state
intervention in economic activity that slows the pace of economic growth.
 Adopting free market policies will guide efficient resource allocation and
stimulate economic development.
 Liberalization of national market draws additional domestic and foreign
investment and thus increases the rate of capital accumulation, which is
important for economic development.
 They argue that by permitting free market to flourish, privatizing state
owned enterprises, promoting free trade and export expansion, attracting
investors, and avoiding the plethora of government intervention and
regulation, both economic efficiency and economic growth will be
stimulated.
The role of Government as Envisioned by the Neo-
liberal Counterrevolution

 Government (State) has a limited economic role.

 Liberalism argues that the state should provide certain fundamental
public goods such as
 Police protection, national defense,
 Judicial and educational services, and physical infrastructures
(road, railways, airports, etc) where the private capital is
incapable of providing these services.
 The role of Government as Envisioned by the Neo-
Liberal Counterrevolution
 Government’s excessive intervention  Moreover, this doctrine believes
in the economy injures economic in international economy and
growth (Third worlds Economy). IT.
 Market forces should determine  Advocates comparative
production decisions, and should set advantage for countries to
prices without gov’t intervention. develop.
 This theory suggests for the  It also advocated the pursuit of

government of the South to: open-door policies on trade and

 Liberalize their economies by; investment.
 It is in this way that Third World
 Deregulating the private sector,
 Removing trade barriers,
countries would receive
technology, capital inputs and
 Freeing prices,
finance.
 Reducing subsidies to
consumers and
 Privatizing state enterprises.
 Alternative Development and Post-Development

Alternative Development
The Major Concern of Alternative Development
 The theory of alternative development is concerned with how

the living condition of the poor be improved.

 The failure of other major theories of dev’t to address poverty

and improve the living condition of the poor necessitates

developing another way of thinking.
(i.e. That is alternative development).
 Alternative development begins from criticizing mainstream

dev’t theories, (modernization theory, dependency theory,

Marxian theory and the neo-liberal doctrine).
 Alternative Development

 Most theories of dev’t have failed to bring the desired change due to
the following reasons:
 Their emphasis on rapid cumulative growth which was not
convoyed by equity.
 Most of them were urban biased b/c of their single-minded
emphasis on industrialization where majority of the poor live in
rural areas.
 B/c of their emphasis on industrialization, they aren’t
environmentally friendly.
 They emphasize on the quantitative aspect of life, not the
qualitative aspect.
 They also focus on reducing the economic gap between the rich
and poor countries. Reducing the gap between the rich and poor
people within the society is ignored.
 … Alternative Development

 AD is an attempt to come up with a new humanistic, people centered

and pro-poor dev’t thinking as a response to these failures.
 It places high emphasis on:
 People’s autonomy,

 Empowerment,

 Local self-reliance,

 Environmental sustainability and

 Direct participatory democracy.

 By doing so, AD is concerned with improving the quality of living of

the poor.
Various Approaches in Alternative Development

 AD has different approaches w/c have been popular in d/t

policy decisions and in international organizations. These
include:
• Redistribution growth
• Basic needs strategy
• Human development
• Women in development/Gender in development and
• Sustainable development
 … Various Approaches in Alternative Development

Redistribution Growth
 The World Bank was a key advocator of this approach.

 The Bank made an assessment that there had been growth, rise in

productivity, higher growth rate per capita GNP in underdeveloped

countries.
 In spite of this growth, however, poverty and inequality have not

been changed.
 Those who were poor remained poor and even much poorer.

 B/c of this, the WB began to advocate a redistribution growth

strategy.
 … Various Approaches in Alternative Development

 Redistribution growth strategy involves:

 Identification of who are the poor and where are they, and
 Formulation of policy packages specifically targeting the
poor/rural poor.
 Redistribution growth is an incremental approach dictating that
resources should be diverted to the poor.
 Increase their productive capacity to raise income;
 Providing socio-economic services like education.
 … Various Approaches in Alternative Development

 Basic Needs Strategy ii. The satisfaction of essential services

like pure drinking water, education,
 The redistribution growth strategy
health, public transport, …
was replaced by a basic needs
strategy b/c it didn’t bring about
 In addition, HRs like civil/political,
changes as expected. and socio-economic rights (like land
ownership right) of citizens were
 The basic needs approach has the
included.
idea that dev’t has to focus on the
satisfaction of basic needs.
 There was recognition that there has
to be empowerment in decision
 Institutions like the ILO had been
making of groups who are socially
advocating this approach.
marginalized like women.
 Acc to the ILO classification, basic
needs involve two major elements:
i. Satisfaction of minimum
requirements of food, cloth & shelter
 … Various Approaches in Alternative Development

Human Development Approach

 Developed by a Pakistan economist, Muhbud Ul Haq who was once
the head of the UNDP.
 It argues that dev’t as a practice has to focus on increasing human
potential.
 To measure human development, the proponents came up with a
measurement called Human Development Index (HDI).
 This measurement is based on human development indicators like
life expectancy, literacy rates and purchasing power of the people.
 … Various Approaches in Alternative Development

Women in Development/Gender in Development/

 It focus on the role of gender in socio-economic dev’t.
 They argue that the contribution of women in socio-economic dev’t
is totally ignored.
 Therefore, the contributions of women in dev’t activities have to be
added in dev’t measures.
 … Various Approaches in Alternative Development

Sustainable Development
 Dev’t/industrialization have brought about changes/damages in the

environment.
 Economic growth impacted the environment and the future

generation.
 Sustainable dev’t is a dev’t that meets the needs of the present

generation without compromising the abilities of future generations

to meet their own needs.
 Dev’t has to take in to consideration the env’t for future

generations.
 Post-Development

 Post-development is a criticism of development and a development

theory arising in the 1980s that holds that all 'development' is a
reflection of Western/Northern hegemony over the rest of the world.
 It criticizes the idea and discourse of development.
 The logic behind post-development refers to development as both
on the ground and development theory, and follows as such:
 Development theory is held to be generated by academia in
tandem/jointly with political ideology.
 The academic-political nature of development theory: tends to be
policy oriented, problem driven, but efficacious/effective relative to
most social theory.
 Post-Development

 On the ground development is initiated by both gov’ts and

NGOs according to the advice of development theory.
 But development theory needs to follow framework set in
place by government and political culture.
 There is then a strong socially constructed aspect to
development theory; where Western interests are guiding
how that knowledge is generated.
 This would mean that development reflects a pattern of
Western hegemony.
Post-Development

Does this mean that post-development is anti-dev’t?

 Absolutely not!
 A post-development approach is not anti-development;
 Rather, it is a political acknowledgement of the injustices and
unequal power relationships of the practice of development, and
 A view that dev’t cannot offer sufficient tools for transformation.
 Instead, it suggests resistance to globalization.
 Advocates roles of grassroots organizations and non-
governmental organizations, alternative forms of livelihood, and
local forms of knowledge and practice.
Position of Post-development Thinking toward Dev’t

 A number of theorists challenged the very meaning of development.

According to them, the way we understand development is rooted in
colonial discourse depicting the North as advanced and progressive and the
South as backward, degenerate and primitive.
 They point out that a new way of thinking about development began in
1949 when President Harry Truman (33rd president of USA) declared:
 “The old imperialism; exploitation for foreign profit has no place in our
plans.
 What we envisage is a program of development based on the concepts of
democratic fair dealings.”
 While claiming that the ‘era of development’ began at this point, post-
development theorists do not suggest that the concept of development was
new.
 What was new was to define development in terms of escaping from
underdevelopment.
 Position of Post-development Thinking toward Dev’t

 Leading members of the post-development school argue that dev’t was

always unjust, never worked, and has now clearly failed.
 The idea of development stands like a ruin in the intellectual landscape

and it is time to dismantle this mental structure.

What is this mental structure?
 To cite an example, they would point how the concept of global poverty is

entirely a modern construct. The idea that we can measure poverty at the
level of entire nations and hence label certain countries as poor on the
basis of their GNP (Gross National Product) per capita is quite new.
 While in pre-industrial societies, poverty applied to certain individuals

and generally did not carry any implications of personal inadequacy, with
the advent of modernity entire nations and continents were led to believe
that they were poor, and in need of assistance, only because their per
capita income was below a universally established minimum.
 The Assumption of the Post-development Thinking

 A middle- class, ‘Western-style’ of life and all that goes with it, is
not a realistic or a desirable goal for the majority of world’s
population.
 In this sense, dev’t is seen as requiring the loss of indigenous
culture, or environmentally and psychologically rich rewarding
modes of life.
 Post-development also challenges the notion of a single path to dev’t
and demands acknowledgment of diversity of perspective and
priorities.
 REE!
E R TH
H AP T
D o f C n g !
EN ea d i
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Kee