Health, Human Rights and Intervention – Human Geography Notes
Paper 2
Concepts of Human Development
• Human development – an improvement in living standards through better use of
resources
Development indicators:
• GDP:
Ø Accurate measurement of the wealth of the country, which will have an impact
on the standard of living
Ø However, it doesn’t include income generated by TNCs
Ø It doesn’t take into account the size of the population
• GNI:
Ø Overseas investments are included in the calculations
Ø However, only economic data is included
Ø Social gaps within a country are not represented because the average per
person is shown
• HDI:
Ø Recognises that development is a broader concept and that we get a more
accurate representation of the level of development
Ø However, it doesn’t take into account inequality
Ø There are still factors not included, e.g. the environment and human rights
• Happy planet index:
Ø HPI = experienced well-being x (life expectancy/ecological footprint)
Ø It covers a whole range of factors (a broad measure) to measure development
Ø Data on wellbeing can be subjective
Ø Human rights are not included
Advanced countries:
• These countries enjoy a very high standard of living
• They have developed by modernising and industrialising through manufacturing
industries
• The wealth generated over the years has been invested into healthcare and education,
and as a result populations have a high life expectancy and are well-educated
• These countries are well-integrated in the global economy and are often sites of world
cities
• E.g. the UK and US
Emerging and developing countries:
• EDCs have a lower standard of living but this is rapidly improving
1
, • These countries, whilst also being primary producers, are industrialising and
generating wealth mainly through the mass production and export of consumer goods
• Wage levels are steadily rising, and earnings are being invested into healthcare and
education systems
• E.g. China and Brazil
Low income developing countries:
• They have such a low income (less than $2,390) and so they are eligible for the poverty
reduction and growth trust
• These countries tend to be primary producers, but subsistence farming or a reliance
on a low number of crops for export generates little income
• This means that little can be invested into healthcare and education and infrastructure
• E.g. Chad and Nepal
Contested development
Case Study – Sharia Law
• This is the law of Islam
• According to the Sharia law: theft is punishable by the amputation of the right hand,
a woman can’t drive a car etc.
• Sharia law is intrusive and strict, especially with regards to women
• It doesn’t rest easily with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
• A concern in the UK and other ‘Christian countries’ is the danger that Sharia law
operates as a parallel legal system
• Countries currently applying Sharia law includes Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Yemen etc.
Contested development
Case Study – Evo Morales
• He is widely known for his anti-colonialist and anti-imperialist rhetoric
• His popularity is based on the exploitation of Bolivia’s natural gas and mineral
resources and sharing the derived wealth among the people
• As a consequence, half a million Bolivians have been lifted out of poverty but despite
this progress, Bolivia remains one of the poorest countries in Latin America (roughly
¼ of all Bolivians live on US$2/day)
• The Morales model is a socialist one, but it doesn’t look beyond giving all Bolivians a
share in the wealth derived
• The model is a limited view of development
Improvements in environmental quality, health, life expectancy are seen by some as more
significant goals for development
Case Study – Hans Rosling
• Rosling’s favourite twin topics are ones of population growth and what’s happening
in developing countries
2
, • There are three or four income groups: $100/day, $10/day, $1/day and the super-rich
in the $1,000/day
• When polled by Rosling, most Westerners are fairly clueless about what’s going on in
developing countries, e.g. over 50% Brits think that the average Bangladeshi mother
births around 5 children, when the actual is 2.5 (and declining)
Access to education:
Literacy rate:
• The general literacy rate worldwide is actually fairly high, most countries enjoy over
80% literacy rate
• The vast majority of North America, Europe and Oceania have about 95% literacy
• South America and Asia have literacy rate of 80-99%
• The continent of Africa has literacy rate of 70% and below
• South Africa enjoys a high literacy rate than expected
Inequalities in education:
• There are significant differences in literacy rates between genders with female having
lower rate of literacy than makes
• Over 82% of people are literate in the world but 87% men can read whilst only 77%
are women
Human Health and Life Expectancy
Measuring the health of a population:
• Life expectancy
• Percentage of population with HIV
• Percentage of the population who are vaccinated
3
, • Money invested in research and development for healthcare
• Number of people per doctor
• Percentage of malnutrition/obesity
• Percentage of smokers within the population
Life expectancy:
• Generally, the advance countries (MEDCs) have a high life expectancy
• For example, the UK has a life expectancy of over 78 years
• Sri Lanka enjoys a high life expectancy compares to its level of development
• There are also significant gender variations between genders – in nearly all
populations, female life expectancy is greater, e.g. in the UK life expectancy for men
is 78.4 years while it is 82.8 years for women
Health:
• There are 2 medical measures of health that are common used:
Ø The number of people per doctor
Ø The percentage of the population with regular access to essential drugs (this
shows more clearly a threefold global subdivision of developed countries
Spending in health: a global overview
• Country with the highest government spending per person per year on health –
Luxembourg (US$6,906)
• Country with the lowest government spending per person per year on health –
Myanmar (US$2)
The epidemiological transition:
• This is the process by which the pattern of mortality and disease is transformed from
one of high mortality among infants and children and episodic famine and epidemic
affecting all age groups to one of degenerative and man-made diseases (such as those
attributed to smoking)
4
Paper 2
Concepts of Human Development
• Human development – an improvement in living standards through better use of
resources
Development indicators:
• GDP:
Ø Accurate measurement of the wealth of the country, which will have an impact
on the standard of living
Ø However, it doesn’t include income generated by TNCs
Ø It doesn’t take into account the size of the population
• GNI:
Ø Overseas investments are included in the calculations
Ø However, only economic data is included
Ø Social gaps within a country are not represented because the average per
person is shown
• HDI:
Ø Recognises that development is a broader concept and that we get a more
accurate representation of the level of development
Ø However, it doesn’t take into account inequality
Ø There are still factors not included, e.g. the environment and human rights
• Happy planet index:
Ø HPI = experienced well-being x (life expectancy/ecological footprint)
Ø It covers a whole range of factors (a broad measure) to measure development
Ø Data on wellbeing can be subjective
Ø Human rights are not included
Advanced countries:
• These countries enjoy a very high standard of living
• They have developed by modernising and industrialising through manufacturing
industries
• The wealth generated over the years has been invested into healthcare and education,
and as a result populations have a high life expectancy and are well-educated
• These countries are well-integrated in the global economy and are often sites of world
cities
• E.g. the UK and US
Emerging and developing countries:
• EDCs have a lower standard of living but this is rapidly improving
1
, • These countries, whilst also being primary producers, are industrialising and
generating wealth mainly through the mass production and export of consumer goods
• Wage levels are steadily rising, and earnings are being invested into healthcare and
education systems
• E.g. China and Brazil
Low income developing countries:
• They have such a low income (less than $2,390) and so they are eligible for the poverty
reduction and growth trust
• These countries tend to be primary producers, but subsistence farming or a reliance
on a low number of crops for export generates little income
• This means that little can be invested into healthcare and education and infrastructure
• E.g. Chad and Nepal
Contested development
Case Study – Sharia Law
• This is the law of Islam
• According to the Sharia law: theft is punishable by the amputation of the right hand,
a woman can’t drive a car etc.
• Sharia law is intrusive and strict, especially with regards to women
• It doesn’t rest easily with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
• A concern in the UK and other ‘Christian countries’ is the danger that Sharia law
operates as a parallel legal system
• Countries currently applying Sharia law includes Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Yemen etc.
Contested development
Case Study – Evo Morales
• He is widely known for his anti-colonialist and anti-imperialist rhetoric
• His popularity is based on the exploitation of Bolivia’s natural gas and mineral
resources and sharing the derived wealth among the people
• As a consequence, half a million Bolivians have been lifted out of poverty but despite
this progress, Bolivia remains one of the poorest countries in Latin America (roughly
¼ of all Bolivians live on US$2/day)
• The Morales model is a socialist one, but it doesn’t look beyond giving all Bolivians a
share in the wealth derived
• The model is a limited view of development
Improvements in environmental quality, health, life expectancy are seen by some as more
significant goals for development
Case Study – Hans Rosling
• Rosling’s favourite twin topics are ones of population growth and what’s happening
in developing countries
2
, • There are three or four income groups: $100/day, $10/day, $1/day and the super-rich
in the $1,000/day
• When polled by Rosling, most Westerners are fairly clueless about what’s going on in
developing countries, e.g. over 50% Brits think that the average Bangladeshi mother
births around 5 children, when the actual is 2.5 (and declining)
Access to education:
Literacy rate:
• The general literacy rate worldwide is actually fairly high, most countries enjoy over
80% literacy rate
• The vast majority of North America, Europe and Oceania have about 95% literacy
• South America and Asia have literacy rate of 80-99%
• The continent of Africa has literacy rate of 70% and below
• South Africa enjoys a high literacy rate than expected
Inequalities in education:
• There are significant differences in literacy rates between genders with female having
lower rate of literacy than makes
• Over 82% of people are literate in the world but 87% men can read whilst only 77%
are women
Human Health and Life Expectancy
Measuring the health of a population:
• Life expectancy
• Percentage of population with HIV
• Percentage of the population who are vaccinated
3
, • Money invested in research and development for healthcare
• Number of people per doctor
• Percentage of malnutrition/obesity
• Percentage of smokers within the population
Life expectancy:
• Generally, the advance countries (MEDCs) have a high life expectancy
• For example, the UK has a life expectancy of over 78 years
• Sri Lanka enjoys a high life expectancy compares to its level of development
• There are also significant gender variations between genders – in nearly all
populations, female life expectancy is greater, e.g. in the UK life expectancy for men
is 78.4 years while it is 82.8 years for women
Health:
• There are 2 medical measures of health that are common used:
Ø The number of people per doctor
Ø The percentage of the population with regular access to essential drugs (this
shows more clearly a threefold global subdivision of developed countries
Spending in health: a global overview
• Country with the highest government spending per person per year on health –
Luxembourg (US$6,906)
• Country with the lowest government spending per person per year on health –
Myanmar (US$2)
The epidemiological transition:
• This is the process by which the pattern of mortality and disease is transformed from
one of high mortality among infants and children and episodic famine and epidemic
affecting all age groups to one of degenerative and man-made diseases (such as those
attributed to smoking)
4
