T. Leonard – Encyclopedia of Developing World

Автор: T. Leonard
Название книги: Encyclopedia of Developing World
Формат: PDF
Жанр: Политология и Социология
Страницы: 1902
Качество: Изначально компьютерное, E-book

The Encyclopedia of the Developing World is a comprehensive work on the historical and current status of developing countries. Containing more than 750 entries, the Encyclopedia encompasses primarily the years since 1945 and defines development broadly, addressing not only economics but also civil society and social progress. Entries cover the most important theories and measurements of development; relate historical events, movements, and concepts to development both internationally and regionally where applicable; examine the contributions of the most important persons and organizations; and detail the progress made within geographic regions and by individual countries.

Historically identified by various terms, the ‘‘Developing
World’’ has always existed, but it came into vogue
as a concept immediately after the close of World War
II in 1945. For the next generation, the ‘‘Third World’’
was the most commonly used term, followed for the
next two decades by the ‘‘Underdeveloped World.’’
Influenced by trade liberalization, globalization, and
the policy agenda known as the Washington Consensus,
the term ‘‘Developing World’’ came into prominence
in the 1980s. In response, at least one
professional organization, the Association of Third
World Studies, briefly considered changing its name.
The most commonly asked questions about the
‘‘Developing World’’ focus upon the countries and
residents that comprise it, the status of its economy,
its political and social characteristics, and its cultural
components. At the end of World War II, analysts
identified Africa, Asia, and Latin America as the most
underdeveloped global regions. Within each were numerous
sub-regions, such as South Asia, sub-Saharan
Africa, and Latin America’s Southern Cone. Over
time, the Middle East was added to the mix and the
regions were further subdivided. Although the Soviet
Union and its East European Bloc often demonstrated
advances in scientific achievement, industrial
output, or military hardware, it remained an underdeveloped
area in terms of the low quality of life for
its inhabitants and the lack of civil and human rights,
factors that became glaringly apparent with the end of
the Cold War in 1991.
Today’s conventional wisdom suggests that all but
the Group of Seven, or G-7, nations and their periphery
fall into the so-called ‘‘Developing World.’’ The
G-7 is comprised of the world’s seven largest industrial
nations: United States, Japan, Great Britain,
France, Germany, Italy, and Canada, though the industrialized
world also includes the other Western
European nations, Australia, and New Zealand. By
the 1990s Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan became
prosperous nations. The inclusion of the latter
three countries suggests that an economic definition
of the ‘‘Developing World’’ remains too simplified.
Beyond economic development, analysts came to
consider the extent of public participation in the political
process. How democratic and representative of
its people is any given government? Are human and
civil rights secured and protected? What is the availability
of basic human services such as education and
health care? Are there environmental protections?
The assumption is that developed nations are representative
democracies where the rights of people are
guaranteed, basic human needs are satisfied, and the
environment secured from various forms of pollution.
Although several of the developed nations fall short
in some of these categories, the absence of most is a
characteristic of the ‘‘Developing World.’’
The logo map used in the publications of the Association
of Third World Studies substantiates the given
economic, political, and social definitions of the
‘‘Developing World.’’ The G-7 nations and their
periphery are absent from that map.
The assistance programs sponsored by the developed
world since 1945 reflect the changing definition
of the ‘‘Developing World.’’ Immediately after World
War II, assistance focused upon improvement in infrastructure—
roads, ports, electricity, water supplies,
and the like—to provide for increased opportunities to
export primary products, including raw materials. By
the late 1950s and into the early 1960s, assistance
programs shifted direction. The end of colonialism,
the independence of India and Indonesia, the emergence
of new and independent nations in Africa, and
Fidel Castro’s Revolution in Cuba brought an awareness
of the need to focus upon economic opportunities
for the general population, improvement in quality of
life, and the right of a nation’s people to political
participation and civil and human rights. These goals
remained the objectives of programs sponsored by
government and non-government organizations that
continued into the 1980s when world politics again
shifted. Identified best by the Washington Consensus,
a set of suggested reforms set forth for Latin America
by the economist John Williamson in 1989, this
change in policy by developed nations cut back on
their international assistance programs and, instead,
called upon the nations of the ‘‘Developing World’’ to
remove their protective barriers against foreign investment,
provide for the privatization of state owned
industries and for increased exports, particularly of
so-called niche products. As they invited developing
nations to enter the global arena, developed nations
increased their pressure on developing nations to democratize the political process, protect civil and
human rights, and encourage environmentalism. International
agreements since the 1980s often contain
provisons for the implementation of plans to address
these human needs.
Despite the good intentions, the ‘‘Developing
World’’ persists. Poverty, with its concomitant shortcomings
in education, health care, housing, and other
basic human needs, remains a reality for a disproportionate
number of the world’s inhabitants. Political
democracy and civil and human rights are not universally
guaranteed. Environmental pollution continues
to go unchecked, taking its most devastating toll upon
the ‘‘Developing World.’’
As the twenty-first century dawned, many analysts
queried the advisability of imposing the developed
world’s criteria for modernization upon the ‘‘Developing
World.’’ The histories of the world’s regions
varied with their own political experiences, their own
ethnic and religious conflicts, and their political, religious,
and social traditions that resist and in some
cases, outright defy modernization as envisioned by
the developed world.
The Encyclopedia of the Developing World provides
a ready reference work for understanding the issues
that affect approximately three quarters of the globe’s
residents. The Encyclopedia is unique because of its
focus upon the post 1945 period when the old colonial
structures in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East crumbled
and elsewhere, as in China, Japan, and Latin
America the traditional elite structure has been replaced
by something new. During the same time
period, the ‘‘Developing World’’ began to demand a
greater share of the world’s economy and an improvement
in quality of life, along with social justice,
political participation, and individual liberties.
How to Use This Book
The Encyclopedia of the Developing World is composed
of almost 800 free-standing entries of 500 to 5000 words
in length. They range from factual narratives, such as
country descriptions and biographies, to thematic interpretations
and analytical discussions of timely topics
like global trading patterns, and a combination of all
three, such as overview articles on the history and
economic development of a particular region. As
much as possible, the encyclopedia covers the history,
economic development, and politics of the developing
world from 1945 to the present, providing the reader
with a reliable, up-to-date view of the current state of
scholarship on the developing world.
Perhaps the most significant feature of the encyclopedia
is the easily accessible A to Z format. Crossreferencing
in the form of See Alsos at the end of most
entries refers the reader to other related entries. Each
article contains a list of References and Further
Reading, including sources used by the writer and
editor as well as additional items that may be of interest
to the reader. Most books or articles cited are easily
available through interlibrary loan services in libraries.
Blind Entries direct readers to essays listed
under another title. For example, the blind entry
‘‘World Bank’’ refers the reader to the article entitled
with that institution’s official name, ‘‘International
Bank for Reconstruction and Development.’’ A thorough,
analytical index complements the accessibility of
the entries, easing the reader’s entry into the wealth of
information provided. A thematic list of entries is also
included to assist readers with research in particular
subjects.
Each country has a stand-alone entry, but also is
included in larger regional studies. For example, discussion
of Chile can be found under the country’s
entry, but its place in regional matters can be found
in ‘‘Southern Cone (Latin America): History and
Economic Development’’; ‘‘Southern Cone (Latin
America): International Relations’’; and ‘‘Ethnic
Conflicts: Southern Cone (Latin America).’’ There
are stand-alone entries for important individuals,
like Jomo Kenyatta, but for context readers should
also refer to the country entry on Kenya and the
topical entries, such as ‘‘Colonialism: History’’ and
‘‘Colonialism: Legacies,’’ to more fully understand
Kenyatta’s philosophy and objectives. The discussion
of ‘‘Development History and Theory’’ is augmented
by the entry ‘‘Development, Measures of.’’ Both are
enhanced by the discussions of the various economic
models: capitalist, communist, socialist, and so on.
The cross-references will lead readers from stop to
stop on such paths throughout the encyclopedia,
and the index is another good starting place to find
the connected discussions.
A total of 251 authors have contributed the entries
to this encyclopedia. They are based around the world,
in both developing and developed nations, including
Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cameroon,
Canada, China, Egypt, France, Germany,
Hungary, India, Israel, Japan, Kenya, Malaysia, Mexico,
the Netherlands, New Zealand, the Philippines,
Poland, Romania, Singapore, South Africa, Sweden,
Switzerland, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, the
United Kingdom, the United States, and Zimbabwe.
In keeping with the global and interdisciplinary nature
of this encyclopedia, contributors represent a variety
of fields, among them finance, religion, anthropology,
geography, environmental science, and law, with subspecialties such as global business, human rights,
ethics, and refugee studies. The expertise of a wideranging
and diverse group of contributors will provide
the reader with a broad-based overview of issues,
events, and theories of the developing world.
Acknowledgments
Several people helped to bring this work to its completion.
A special thanks goes to Lorraine Murray of
Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, who kindly provided
me the opportunity to undertake this project and to
Mark L. Georgiev at the Taylor and Francis imprint
of Routledge, for directing its completion following
Routledge’s acquisition of the project from Fitzroy
Dearborn. The guidance offered by the Board of
Advisors—Ade Adefuye, Akwasi B. Assensoh, Nader
Entessar, Stephen Fischer-Galati, Alexander Gungov,
Harold Isaacs, Gary Kline, Paul J. Magnarella,
John Mukum Mbaku, Alojzy Z. Nowak, Philip Oxhorn,
Paul A. Rodell, Houman A. Sadri, Barbara
Tenenbaum and Pamela A. Zeiser—ensured the Encyclopedia’s
comprehensiveness. The expertise of each
author made possible the accuracy and completeness
of the 762 entries. The editorial efforts by Mark
O’Malley and particularly Rachel Granfield made this
a more readable work. As always, Yvonne offered the
encouragement, support, and understanding that only
a wife could. This work is dedicated to her.
Thomas M. Leonard