PERSPECTIVES OF DEVELOPMENT
From theory to reality

Table of Contents Introduction 1 What is Development? 2 General approaches to development 4 Dimensions of development 5 Economic Development 5 Human Development 6 Sustainable Development 7 Territorial Development 8 Western Definition of Development in Practice 8 Conclusion 10 Works Cited 11

Perspectives of Development
Introduction
When the concept of international development was initially developed in the post-World War II era, the countries of the First World had 65 percent of the world’s income with only 20 percent of its population, while the Third World was home of 67 percent of the world’s population but had only 18 percent of its income. People embraced the word development as a desirable objective of postwar economic policy in the late 1940s. "Development" was not precisely defined, but it was taken to mean improved economic opportunity by increasing production of goods and services in a long-term way, through capital formation. In short, it was associated with economic growth.
In the 1960s the association of development with economic growth came under increasing criticism by authors such as Dudley Seers, Gunnar Myrdal, Paul Streeten, Hollis Chenery, Mahbub ul Haq and institutions like the International Labour Organisation (ILO). They pointed out that developing countries did not experience much change in the living conditions of the masses of the poor in spite of the impressive growth figures in the post-World War II period and came to the conclusion that development involves more than economic growth and changes in economic structures. Other critics like Amartya Sen went even further and challenged the too narrow focus on the economic dimensions of development alone. Amartya Sen (1999) explained the concept of development focusing on the concept of freedom. He sees development as an integrated process of expansion of substantive freedoms.
Thus the word “Development” is not easy to define. It includes a broad range of disciplines and works to improve the quality of life of people around the world. It includes both economic and social development and consists of many issues such as humanitarian and foreign aid, poverty alleviation, the rule of law and governance, food and water security, capacity building, healthcare and education, women and children’s rights, disaster preparedness, infrastructure, and sustainability.
This article will explain different definitions of international development taking different viewpoints.

What is Development?
In general terms, “development” means an “event constituting a new stage in a changing situation” or the process of change per se. If not qualified, “development” is indirectly proposed as something positive or desirable. When referring to a society or to a socio-economic system, “development” usually means improvement, either in the general situation of the system, or in some of its constituent elements.
Development has various connotations. The meaning a particular person attaches to the term depends on his subjective view of the world. Indeed, the meaning of development is not only a product of the individual's perspective but also of the particular period in time when the word is being expressed. Thus, in order to understand the various theories of development, one must place them in a historical context. (Conteras, R 2003:1)
Sapru.R.K (2002:3) noted that the concept of development is neither new nor old. Development is a continuously and dynamic concept. Since the beginning of civilization it has been taking different shapes and dimensions. The nature of development as seen in the early 1990s differs considerably from that seen in the early 1950s or from that in the 19th century.
Development is a broad concept that entails social, economic, political and human development. Human development establishes the foundation on which the first three concepts are based.
According to Burkey (1993: 38), economic and political development must translate in to social development. As abroad concept, development has been extensively explored with a view to realize economic growth and social development. However, the emphasis shifted from industrial and economic development as the determining factors in societal transformation. Economic growth may bring material gain to the people, but development is much about enrichment of the lives of all the people in the society (Edwards 1993: 80)
Earlier definitions of development focused on economic growth and the reproduction of economic, social and political systems that existed in the western industrial nations. The definition of development as economic growth was abandoned when it became apparent that the developing countries were not modernizing as expected. Todaro (1982:68) noted that, “when a large number of third world nations did achieve the overall UN growth targets but the levels of living of the masses of people remained for the most parts unchanged, signaled that something was very wrong with this narrow definition of development”. Development was then redefined to imply progress towards a range of welfare goals.
According to Todaro – Development is not purely an economic phenomenon but rather a multi-dimensional process involving reorganization and reorientation of entire economic AND social system. It is process of improving the quality of all human lives with three equally important aspects. These are: 1. Raising peoples’ living levels, i.e. incomes and consumption, levels of food, medical services, education through relevant growth processes 2. Creating conditions conducive to the growth of peoples’ self-esteem through the establishment of social, political and economic systems and institutions which promote human dignity and respect 3. Increasing peoples’ freedom to choose by enlarging the range of their choice variables, e.g. varieties of goods and services
Sen. A (1999:3) views development as a process of expanding the real freedoms that people enjoy. This view contrasts with narrower views of development, such as identifying development with the growth of gross national product, or with the rise in personal incomes, or with industrialization, or with technological advance, or with social modernization. Growth of GNP or of individual incomes can, of course, be very important as means to expanding the freedoms enjoyed by the members of the society. But freedoms depend also on other determinants, such as social and economic arrangements (for example, facilities for education and health care) as well as political and civil rights (for example, the liberty to participate in public discussion and scrutiny). (Sen, 1999:3)
Sen (1999) argues that development requires the removal of major sources of unfreedom: poverty as well as tyranny, poor economic opportunities as well as systematic social deprivation, neglect of public facilities as well as intolerance or overactivity of repressive states. Sen (1999) further pointed out five distinct types of freedom. These include (1) political freedoms, (2) economic facilities, (3) social opportunities, (4) transparency guarantees and (5) protective security. In other words, the requirements for development can be described as an individual’s ability to participate freely in the political process, the mechanisms and capacity to seek economic well-being, the networks and connections which make social integration possible, free access to reliable information sources, and structures which allow personal safety.
Thus “Development” has continued to change meaning depending on who is talking and thinking about it. But ultimately the view of development should insist on basic needs of people being met, emphasize the importance of building capabilities of individuals, and the importance of equity and sustainability. Development should therefore have a “human face” that is it should be intended for the well-being of people both in the current and future generations. Development that falls short of these two principles (equity and sustainability) may be regarded as not being meaningful.
General approaches to development
In discussions of development studies two general approaches of development can be identified: 1. The fight against poverty: This approach focuses on the problems of widespread poverty, hunger and misery in developing countries and on the question of what can be done in order to realize improvements of the situation in the short term. 2. The analysis of long-term economic and social development: This approach concentrates on comparing developments in different countries, regions and historical periods in order to gain a better understanding of the factors that have long-term effects on the dynamics of socio-economic development.
The characteristic of the first approach is a strong connection with the problems of developing countries and their people. People studying this approach think that present levels of misery and injustice are unacceptable and aim their studies to arrive at concrete recommendations for action. The second approach argues for political actions in order to achieve dramatic changes in the existing order of things.

Dimensions of development
Most of the agents focus development on specific and selected parts of system. To end this “development” is qualified and specified in different ways. A list of possible qualifications comprises: * Economic development: i.e., improvement of the way donations, goods and services are used within (or by) the system to generate new goods and services in order to provide additional consumption and/or investment possibilities to the members of the system. * Human development: people-centered development, where the focus is put on the improvement of the various dimensions affecting the well-being of individuals and their relationships with the society (health, education, entitlements, capabilities, empowerment etc.) * Sustainable development: development which considers the long term perspectives of the socio-economic system, to ensure that improvements occurring in the short term will not be detrimental to the future status or development potential of the system, i.e. development will be “sustainable” on environmental, social, financial and other grounds. * Territorial development: development of a specific region (space) achievable by exploiting the specific socio-economic, environmental and institutional potential of the area, and its relationships with external subjects.
Economic Development
The discussion of development is always tied up with basic questions like: why are poor countries poor and rich countries rich? Why do poor countries lag behind rich countries in the development of their standards of living? How can poor countries become more prosperous? How can poor countries catch up with the rich countries? In this sense an important dimension of the concept of 'development' refers to economic growth or more precisely growth of national income per capita.
Economic development is the development of economic wealth of countries, regions or communities for the well-being of their inhabitants. From a strategical perspective, economic development can be defined as efforts that seek to improve the economic well-being and quality of life for a community by creating and/or retaining jobs and supporting or growing incomes and the tax base.
Economic development has traditionally been seen as the first form of development. It has often been strictly associated with the concept of economic growth, in turn defined as an increase in the per capita income of the economic system. Development conceived of as economic growth is a quantitative concept and basically means more of the same. Yet, even if we limit ourselves to the economic sphere, it is clear that economic development is more than economic growth alone. Economic development refers to growth accompanied by qualitative changes in the structure of production and employment, generally referred to as structural change (Kuznets, 1966). This means that economic growth could take place without any economic development. Such examples are those oil-exporting countries, which experienced sharp increases in national income but saw hardly any changes in their economic structure.
There are significant differences between economic growth and economic development. The term "economic growth" refers to the increase (or growth) of a specific measure such as real national income, gross domestic product, or per capita income. National income or product is commonly expressed in terms of a measure of the aggregate value-added output of the domestic economy called gross domestic product (GDP). When the GDP of a nation rises economists refer to it as economic growth.
The term "economic development," on the other hand, involves much more. It typically refers to improvements in a variety of indicators such as literacy rates, life expectancy, and poverty rates.
Human Development
Human development can be simply defined as a process of enlarging choices. Every day human beings make a series of choices – some economic, some social, some political, some cultural. If people are the proper focus of development efforts, then these efforts should be geared to enhancing the range of choices in all areas of human industry for every human being. Human development is both a process and an outcome. It is concerned with the process through which choices are enlarged, but it also focuses on the outcomes of enhanced choices.
UNDP (2010) for instance, provides an comprehensive concept of human development on the basis of three criteria: (i) “Long and healthy life”, (ii) “knowledge” and (iii) “A decent standard of living”, respectively measured by life expectancy at birth, mean years and expected years of schooling and gross national income per capita at purchasing parity (iv) the inequality in the distribution of the specific features within countries.
Sustainable Development
The concept of “sustainable development” was first introduced by Brundtland (1987), who defines development as “sustainable” if it “meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. It contains within it two key concepts: * The concept of needs, in particular the essential needs of the world's poor, to which overriding priority should be given; and * The idea of limitations imposed by the state of technology and social organization on the environment's ability to meet present and future needs.
Sustainable development means minimizing the use of exhaustible resources, or at least, ensuring that revenues obtained from them are used to create a constant flow of income across generations, and making an appropriate use of renewable resources. This applies to energy (oil and oil products in particular) but also to fish stock, wildlife, forests, water, land and air. Land degradation, due to soil erosion and salinization, persistent water and air pollution, depletion of fish stock and deforestation are all examples of consequences of non-sustainable activities. Soil conservation practices; Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) based on reduced use of energy, pesticides and chemicals; waste management and recycling, waste water treatment, use of renewable energy sources such as biomasses and solar panels, are frequently cited as techniques for sustainable development. The concept of sustainability has also been extended beyond environmental concerns, to include social sustainability, i.e. long term acceptance and ownership of development changes by the citizens, their organizations and associations (civil society), and financial and economic sustainability.

Territorial Development
This dimension of development refers to a territorial system, proposed as a set of interrelationships between rural and urban areas, in a space characterized by the existence of poles of attraction for human activities (production and consumption of goods and services, but also culture and social life), and connected by information systems and transport infrastructures.
Western Definition of Development in Practice
The 19th century definition of development bore many negative meanings. Eventually closely associated with colonization, development was not merely the creation of formal political and economic institutions in colonial territories. Rather, it was accompanied – not unlike colonialism itself – by the Western belief that to occupy and colonize was to bring civilization to backward peoples and societies. Western domination of culture and resources was justified and considered to the benefit of both colonizers and colonized. The 20th century version of international development was likewise from the start burdened with an clear political agenda.
The decolonization of the Third World and the increasing power of the Soviet Union and its communist ideology both posed a potential threat to the economic and political strength of the US – and the larger West. While the former colonies worked to redefine development in terms of their own pursuit of sovereignty and social justice through industrialization for the substitution of imports and regimes based in participatory politics, the US and its Western counterparts attached conditions to the foreign aid and loans they distributed to the newly-independent countries. These conditions have been a direct expression of the West’s own definition of development.
The World Bank and the IMF used loans to promote the market politics of the US: to receive a loan, a country had to plan a project that would be approved by one of the institutions, and then it had to make specific changes to its domestic economic and political structures in order to receive a loan. The policy requirements – or conditionalities – attached to the loans defined development as the achievement of an open domestic market, an export-oriented economy, widespread privatization, and a minimal state. This market approach to development is well illustrated in the World Bank’s traditional use solely of a country’s Gross National Product (GNP, also known as Gross Domestic Product, or GDP), or its per capita income, to determine its level of development. Alongside the work of lending institutions, the distribution of foreign aid over the next decades was frequently motivated by the political interests of its donors – many critics would even argue that all aid has been politically motivated. Monetary assistance in the form of both loans and donations typically went only to countries with favorable political regimes and it demanded the development of economic climates that permitted foreign business and investment. In addition, food aid, much of which was and still is supplied by the US (specifically agencies like the United States Agency for International Development, or USAID), was an opportunity for rich countries to rid their domestic markets of agricultural surpluses, another political and economic decision that has benefited the West. By doing this, they both stabilized their own economies by preventing price drops and undermined production abroad by creating a demand for US exports. The direct result of this intervention has been a weakening of local economies by driving down prices for local food crops. Whether intentionally or unconsciously biased, the West’s decisions about how and to whom to distribute aid put a Western spin on the definition of a worthy need while also attaching Western politics to the already political meaning of development.

Conclusion
How can the negative aspects and effects of international development be reduced so that international development can truly help those it means to help? The traditional model basically has to be flipped, turned upside down, and rooted in principles and dynamics almost exactly opposite of those that have defined international development since the 1950’s. International development must be approached with respect, understanding, generosity, and humility, while the top-down model has to become much more bottom-up. What needs to be taken out of the equation are the West’s colonial attitude of superiority and conviction that no one knows better. In order for positive change to take place, the people have to first realize that change is necessary. Then they must figure out for themselves how they are willing and able to help and change themselves. With local leadership and creativity, the pressing needs of a community can be translated into projects and addressed as is most suitable for that community. Projects must be more coherent and communities more cohesive and international development must be allowed to be for the developing world, by the developing world. In the words of the former Secretary General of the United Nations, Kofi Anan, as already quoted earlier, “The objective [of international development] is to enable poor people to help themselves through economic activity that builds on their strengths and compensates for their weaknesses.” This has been the objective of international development in theory since its modern conceptions in the post-World War II era, but geographical, contextual, and theoretical distance between development planners, financial donors, and workers, on the one hand, and underdeveloped communities, on the other, has made for a movement that repeatedly fails to fully accomplish its central goal.

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