Transcript 03-variations-in-development-within-a

Development & Health
Variations In
Development
WITHIN a
Country –
Case Study
of Brazil
Variation in the Level of Development within a City in Brazil (Sao Paulo)
Variations In Development Within A Country
• One problem associated with using indicators of
development is that they don’t always give a true
picture of levels of development throughout the
entire country.
• This is because indicators are usually given as an
average for the country as a whole.
• Within average figures there may be enormous
variations between different parts of the
country.
• The table on the next page highlights variations
in levels of development between North East
Brazil and South East Brazil.
Regional Variations in Brazil
• Brazil is an excellent example of a
country with regional inequalities
in terms of economic development.
• We will now look at some of the
reasons why SE Brazil is more
developed than NE Brazil…
• During the early years of
Portuguese colonial rule, the NE of
Brazil became the wealthiest part
of the country.
• Its wealth was based on plantation
crops (particularly sugar cane).
Regional Inequalities In Brazil
• Salvador and Recife (NE Brazil) grew as ports exporting
sugar and receiving large numbers of European
immigrants and slaves brought from Africa.
• Since 1950, however, it is the South East region of Brazil
where industrialisation, urbanisation and the creation of
jobs and wealth has been most rapid – leaving the North
East region lagging well behind.
• Today the North East has 30% of Brazil’s population but
only 14% of the country’s wealth.
• The South East region where 42% of the country’s
population now live has 64% of the nation’s wealth.
North East Brazil
• Most people in NE Brazil are subsistence farmers or
are landless sharecroppers who farm the land for
someone else and receive a share of the produce in
return.
• The soils once used to produce plantation crops are
now mainly exhausted and eroded.
• The poor soils and frequent drought mean that crop
yields are often insufficient to feed the local
population.
• Where soils are better, the crops grown are usually
for export (e.g. sugar cane and cocoa) rather than for
home consumption.
North East Brazil
• High birth rate and lack of natural resources means that
the region is overpopulated.
• Despite one large HEP station in the region, energy
supplies are insufficient for domestic use or for the
development of industry.
• Lack of investment has meant that transport systems
and industry have not developed and services have not
been provided.
• Lack of jobs, services and food supply has caused
thousands to migrate away from the region.
• Many migrants have moved to the South East and a few
have been resettled in Amazonia.
South East Brazil
• The initial development of the South East
region of Brazil was centred on coffee
growing (Sao Paulo), gold and diamond
prospecting (Minas Gerais) and their export
through the natural port of Rio de Janeiro.
• Real growth followed with the mining of iron
ore, the production of steel and the
manufacture of ships and cars.
• HEP produced locally and oil imported and
refined at Rio provided the necessary supply
of energy.
South East Brazil
• The region has become Brazil’s centre of
commerce, education, administration,
transport and culture.
• The prospect of more and better paid jobs, a
more reliable food supply, improved services
and the perception of the ‘bright lights’ have
all acted like a magnet to attract many people
to the area.
• The region has also received most government
and foreign investment and has the highest
standard of living in the country.
Amazonia – The North
• Remote with hot & wet climate.
• Low population density due to the dense vegetation
cover (rainforest).
• Soils are poor due to leaching.
• Less accessible, this has hindered development as it
is too expensive.
• However, more recently the trees and land are seen
as a resource to be exploited.
• Areas are being cleared for industry, farming, mining
& settlement.
• This is aiding development as better jobs are
available.
• Government spending has increased; facilities and
services are increasing as a result.
Sample Question:
Levels of development can vary
greatly in different areas in a
developing country.
For a named country you have
studied, suggest reasons for the
variations in development.
(10 marks)
Brazil is a country I have studied where there are huge
differences in levels of development. 3 areas where there are big
differences are the Amazon, the North East and the South East.
The Amazon is less developed because.....
However more recently the trees have been seen as a resource
leading to....
Another less developed area is the North East. This area was
once...
More recently though....
The most developed area is the South East. This region has...
Clearly there are regional and rural/urban differences but there
are also differences in the Urban areas eg. Rio and Sao Paulo.
From the Mark Scheme:
•
The South East is much more prosperous than other regions due to the
concentration of industry and commerce in the “Golden Triangle” of Sao Paulo, Rio
de Janeiro and Belo Horizonte. this area has the best transport system in Brazil,
the greatest number of services, and has benefited most from Government help
coffee growing has long been carried out on the rich terra rossa soils around Sao
Paulo producing job opportunities and creating wealth for the area and the national
economy Rio de Janeiro – until 1960 the capital of Brazil, had the advantages of a
good natural harbour which encouraged trade, immigration, industry, and more
recently, tourism.
•
The North East, in contrast, is handicapped by more ‘negative’ factors such as
periodic droughts, fewer mineral resources and a shortage of energy supplies all
of which have encouraged outwards migration
•
The North (Amazonia) suffers from its more peripheral location, its inhospitable
(Rainforest) climate, poor soils, dense vegetation and inaccessibility. Not
surprisingly, it is the poorest of Brazil’s five main regions. Until recently, there was
also a lack of government investment and much of the region has lost out on basic
services such as health, education and electricity.
•
In addition to explaining the sorts of marked socio-economic regional variations
which exist in a huge and diverse country such as Brazil, candidates may also
comment on the marked differences in living standards which exist between
relatively wealthy and better provided for urban areas compared to poorer more
isolated rural areas and to the contrasts that can be found within urban areas – eg
hillside favelas such as Rocinho in Rio versus the prosperous apartments
overlooking Copacabana Beach.