North-South divide

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The updated view of the north-south divide. Blue includes G8 states and developed/ first world states.

The North-South Divide (or Rich-Poor Divide) is the socio-economic and political division that exists between the wealthy developed countries, known collectively as "the North", and the poorer developing countries (least developed countries), or "the South."^[1] Although most nations comprising the "North" are in fact located in the Northern Hemisphere, the divide is not primarily defined by geography. The North is home to four out of five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council and all members of the G8. "The North" mostly covers the West and the First World, with much of the Second World. The expression "North-South divide" is still in common use, but the terms "North" and "South" are already somewhat outdated. As nations become economically developed, they may become part of the "North", regardless of geographical location, while any other nations which do not qualify for "developed" status are in effect deemed to be part of the "South."^[2]

[edit] Problems with defining the divide

Following the fall of the Soviet Bloc, which was commonly referred to as the Second World, many of its constituent countries were reclassified as developing, despite being geographically northern. At the same time, geographically southern nations previously considered "developing," such as the East Asian Tigers or Turkey, have joined the modern First World, but are classified inconsistently in maps showing the North-South divide.^{[citation needed]} Similarly, dependencies of developed nations are also classified as Southern, although they are part of the developed world.^[3].

On an ideological level, some development geographers have argued that current concentration on the North-South divide as the main organizing principle for understanding the world economy has overlooked the role of inter-imperial conflicts between the United States, Japan, and Europe.^[4].

[edit] The north

Organisations such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), generally agree that the group of developed countries includes the following countries/regions (in alphabetical order):^{[citation needed]}

     Countries described as high-income and advanced economies by the WB and IMF

[edit] Americas

•  Canada
•  United States

[edit] Asia

• Special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China:
  •  Hong Kong
  •  Macau
•  Israel
•  Japan
•  Singapore
•  South Korea
•  Taiwan

[edit] European Union and European Free Trade Association

[edit] Oceania

• Australia
• New Zealand

[edit] Other G8 Members

• Russia

[edit] Brandt Line

The Brandt Line is a visual depiction of the North-South divide, proposed by German Chancellor Willy Brandt in the 1980s. It approximately encircles the world at a latitude of 30° N, passing between North and Central America, north of Africa and India, but dipping south so as to include Australia and New Zealand in the "Rich North".

[edit] Digital divide

The global digital divide is often characterised as corresponding to the North-South divide, however it is interesting to note that Internet use, and especially broadband access, is now soaring in Asia compared with other continents. This phenomenon is partially explained by the ability of many countries in Asia to bypass older Internet technology and infrastructure, coupled with booming economies which allow vastly more people to get online.

[edit] Development gap

World map indicating Human Development Index (2008)

0.950 and over      0.900–0.949      0.850–0.899      0.800–0.849      0.750–0.799

0.700–0.749      0.650–0.699      0.600–0.649      0.550–0.599      0.500–0.549

0.450–0.499      0.400–0.449      0.350–0.399      under 0.350      not available

(Colour-blind compliant map) For red-green color vision problems.

The North-South divide has more recently been named the development gap. This places greater emphasis on closing the evident gap between rich (more economically developed) countries and poor (less economically developed countries) countries. A good measure of on which side of the gap a country is located is the Human Development Index (HDI). The nearer this is to 1.0, the greater is the country's level of development and the further the country is on its development pathway (closer towards being well developed), exemplified well by Walter Rostow's model of development and the Clark Fisher model.

[edit] See also

• Geopolitics
• North-South divide in the United Kingdom
• North-South divide in Belgium
• North-South divide in Italy
• North-south divide in Korea
• North-South divide in the United States
  • Northern and Southern United States
  • Mason-Dixon line (USA)

[edit] External links

• Share The World's Resources: The Brandt Commission Report, a 1980 report by a commission led by Willy Brandt that popularized the terminology
• Brandt 21 Forum, a recreation of the original commission with an updated report (information on original commission at site)

[edit] References

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (April 2008)