What are the factors that led to contemporary differences in development between countries?

South Korea’s economy is booming thanks to a combination of  high taxes on foreign goods  and  a large ready made workforce . South Korea’s taxes on imported goods forced consumers to look to Korean made goods before foreign goods . This creates jobs and Korean companies are able to flourish without much competition from foreign companies .The government also invested heavily in research and the development of hi-tech goods which has made South Korea one of the top manufacturers and exporters of such goods . TNCs like Sony from Japan have also been attracted to the low wages and low taxes  in South Korea  and have opened factories there . In addition TNC’s bring know how to the country which has enabled it to copy and in the future develop its own goods .With more jobs available  unemployment is reduced and income is raised enabling South Koreans to spend more which increases demand  and stimulates the market  and the cycle continues . With more money available the country has moved on from primary all the way to tertiary dominated  job sector . The success of industrializing has led to South Korean companies investing in other foreign countries  which shows just developed the country  has become .The same however cannot be said of the Haitian economy which has been ravaged by corruption , natural disasters and lack of investment .Haiti  unlike South Korea is heavily dependent on foreign goods which means local companies cannot compete in their own country . Development is slowed when local companies are not successful as they than cannot provide employment  and unemployment rises .The lack of foreign investment in Haiti also hinders development  as TNC’s are hesitant to expand to the country  because of its instability politically . TNCs  bring more than just employment as shown in the case of South Korea and without them Haiti has suffered .As a result Haiti has high unemployment and a stagnant economy which is regularly rocked by damages to the infrastructure thanks to hurricanes and mudslides .Much like the political factor affects the economy’s development , the Economy affects the social aspect of both these  Countries .

As a direct consequence of unemployment  ,crime rates are very  high in Haiti . Gangs run large parts of Port Au- Prince the nations capital . With no jobs and no way to get an income people turn to crime to survive  and while crime is all over the world LEDCs are most affected by crime as the countries are very poor to begin with .The education system is also affected by the economy , a good economy will usually lead to a good education system and vice versa .Facilities in schools are substandard and with a 53% literacy rate  Haiti has one of the least literate population in the world .Education is vital to development  as an educated workforce is qualified for jobs  in the secondary and tertiary sectors . This is another reason why TNC’s shun Haiti in favour of other countries  as they need  an educated workforce in this modern age  and as Haiti has no natural resources to speak of  companies involved in mining and farming are unlikely to settle there . Healthcare is also an issue in LEDC’s and in Haiti’s case it stems from a lack of doctors  and lack of investment by the government  . With the disasters that have been associated with Haiti over the years   healthcare is important and the lack of reliable hospitals has led to a sick workforce which has not been able to push the country forward  and help it develop . For South Korea the case is once again different , employment is high hence crime rates are low   . South Korea has also invested in its future generations by building more schools and improving education tremendously   . With a highly educated  and skilled workforce South Korea is not dependent on farming or mining , rather its one of the leading car manufacturers   of hi-tech goods and services . South Korea has social problems like every other country but theirs as a developed country are nowhere near as big as Haiti’s as the South Korean government can provide solutions where the Haitian government cant .

Finally one of the key factors that led to the contemporary differences in development between an LEDC like Haiti and a NIC like South Korea is the effect natural disasters has had . South Korea has had natural disasters ranging from mudslides  ,earthquakes and typhoons but they pale in comparison to Haitian disasters . The main reason Haiti is underdeveloped today is because of the hurricanes ,landslides that have damaged the countries infrastructure repeatedly over the years Companies looking to invest would be discouraged by the prospect of having to regularly repair their buildings or build new ones should they be destroyed. Hurricanes have destroyed buildings , farms and roads causing millions of dollars worth of damage over the years  and the country has simply not been able to dig itself out of whole created by the massive debt they have due to this .While countries can still flourish even with natural disasters (Japan) Haiti has to contend with the other issues  and it has been unable to cope . Hurricanes and floods have been the bane of development in Haiti as they cause mass homelessness and take away jobs adding to the unemployment . The countries lack of natural resources has also led to it not developing as usually  most countries still in the first few phases of development have a resource of some sort which forms the basis of their income . Haiti is dependant on farming on bad land at the mercy of hurricanes  , a devastating coincidence . South Korea and most NIC’s have had to contend with  very few natural disasters which has meant their development has been unhindered over the years . They have been able to concentrate entirely on industrialization without having to constantly pick up the pieces after an earthquake and such .This has proved to be the difference between these NICS and LEDCs   that has allowed them to move from LEDC to NIC  in a relatively short space of time . Natural resources available in other countries but not in Haiti also play a big part in the development of countries .Oil rich countries like the UAE , Dubai in particular have exploded since the discovery of oil on their lands . In the space of 40 years Dubai has gone from an LEDC to one of the leading oil producers and a leading tourist attraction . Tourism has grown big on the desert island and this is thanks to their government investing in tourist attractions in  one of the least likeliest countries in the world . This is a perfect example of a natural resource being used to fund the development of a country to a point where the natural resource itself is no longer as important as the industry it helped build .

Ultimately these factors have led to the contemporary differences in development between these two examples of  LEDCs and NICs. The political and physical factors have affected the development of both these countries  with the political factor just shading the physical factor when regarding the two sets in general . Countries with a good government usually encourage investment  in their countries and investment is the first step to development along with education  . The countries that have had good links with other governments have quickly developed  while those without have stayed behind . The same applies for countries rich in natural resources , oil being the name resource here . Oil rich countries have used  their resource to not just develop their countries but to develop them to a point where they are now considered tourist attractions  and tourism is slowly replacing  the export of oil as the main trade .In conclusion countries with a good government and natural resources or a combination of both are developed today . Those  with corrupt governments  are still LEDC’s even with those that have natural resources as the government  does not invest the money back into the country and development is not  the first priority