Common Problems of Developing Nations

Essay by Nelly25mattUniversity, Bachelor'sA, February 2008

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Developing countries face a vast range of problems. One of the problems they face is a low standard of living. With the exception of small elite groups the people in these countries have low incomes, inadequate housing, poor health, limited education, high infant mortality, and low life expectancies.

Low levels of living and low production go hand-in-hand. If a country doesn’t produce a lot of goods and services, it can’t consume them either. Poor nutrition during childhood can hinder mental and physical development which creates low productivity.

These countries face a high dependency burden rate. This means that there is a relatively large portion of the population that is unable to produce and depend on others to produce for them. These people include children and the elderly.

The dependence on agriculture is another problem facing developing countries. With low levels of technology and knowledge the farmers can barely produce enough food to provide for their families.

If anything is left over then they may trade with a neighbor in exchange for clothing or other essentials.

Present developing countries differ from current more developed countries in their earlier periods of development in many ways. Developing countries today don’t have the abundance of resources that current developed nations had during their development. Today’s developing countries also don’t have the educated population to be able to use their resources efficiently.

Climate is another difference between current developing and current developed countries. Almost all developing countries today live in the tropical or subtropical climates. However, most economically successful countries are located in the temperature zone. The extreme heats contribute to poor soil quality and deterioration of many natural goods.

Another difference is the rate of population growth. Current developing countries have been increasing at annual rates of over 2.5% recently whereas the currently developed...