Discuss the View That the Caribbean Today Is Underdeveloped and Dependent
Discuss the view that the Caribbean today is underdeveloped and dependent.
The Caribbean refers to the chain of islands and mainland territories washed by the Caribbean Sea that share a similar historical, social and cultural background. Before one can argue whether or not the Caribbean is underdeveloped, the term development must be inspected. The United Nations defines development the ability to lead healthy lives, to be knowledgeable, access to resources for a decent standard of living and to be able to participate in the life of the community. The dimensions of social development are: social welfare, health, education, housing, urban and rural development and land reform. The HDI of the UNDP combines measurement of per capita income, health and education. Quite logically if a nation fails to meet the factors of development, it will have to depend on foreigners for assistance leading to dependency. Due to the inability to completely sustain and meet the cost of living, respective Caribbean governments have sought loans and general assistance both within and outside the region. These assistance comes at a cost, indigenous ideas skills and minds tend to be overlooked for that of foreigners. Transnational companies set up businesses in the various islands driving local industries out of business. To date, the only country in the region that has not sought a loan from the International Monetary Fund IMF, is Barbados, one of the Caribbean’s most developed country. This dependency syndrome rears its head in times of distress such as after natural disasters and also to do relatively unimportant projects. Financially the country suffers as profits that should be invested to create development have to be used to repay mounting debts. This is counterproductive to any nation seeking sustainable development.
The region is relatively well off by comparison with the rest of the developing world. However, there is a wide range of achievement in human development from
The Caribbean refers to the chain of islands and mainland territories washed by the Caribbean Sea that share a similar historical, social and cultural background. Before one can argue whether or not the Caribbean is underdeveloped, the term development must be inspected. The United Nations defines development the ability to lead healthy lives, to be knowledgeable, access to resources for a decent standard of living and to be able to participate in the life of the community. The dimensions of social development are: social welfare, health, education, housing, urban and rural development and land reform. The HDI of the UNDP combines measurement of per capita income, health and education. Quite logically if a nation fails to meet the factors of development, it will have to depend on foreigners for assistance leading to dependency. Due to the inability to completely sustain and meet the cost of living, respective Caribbean governments have sought loans and general assistance both within and outside the region. These assistance comes at a cost, indigenous ideas skills and minds tend to be overlooked for that of foreigners. Transnational companies set up businesses in the various islands driving local industries out of business. To date, the only country in the region that has not sought a loan from the International Monetary Fund IMF, is Barbados, one of the Caribbean’s most developed country. This dependency syndrome rears its head in times of distress such as after natural disasters and also to do relatively unimportant projects. Financially the country suffers as profits that should be invested to create development have to be used to repay mounting debts. This is counterproductive to any nation seeking sustainable development.
The region is relatively well off by comparison with the rest of the developing world. However, there is a wide range of achievement in human development from