Developing country
A developing country is a sovereign state with a less developed industrial base and a lower Human Development Index (HDI) relative to other countries.[3] However, this definition is not universally agreed upon. There is also no clear agreement on which countries fit this category.[4][5] The terms low and middle-income country (LMIC) and newly emerging economy (NEE) are often used interchangeably but refers only to the economy of the countries. The World Bank classifies the world's economies into four groups, based on gross national income per capita: high, upper-middle, lower-middle, and low income countries. Least developed countries, landlocked developing countries and small island developing states are all sub-groupings of developing countries. Countries on the other end of the spectrum are usually referred to as high-income countries or developed countries.
There are controversies over the term's use, as some feel that it perpetuates an outdated concept of "us" and "them".[6] In 2015, the World Bank declared that the "developing/developed world categorization" had become less relevant and that they will phase out the use of that descriptor. Instead, their reports will present data aggregations for regions and income groups.[5][7] The term "Global South" is used by some as an alternative term to developing countries.
Developing countries tend to have some characteristics in common often due to their histories or geographies. For example, they commonly have: lower levels of access to safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene, energy poverty, higher levels of pollution (e.g. air pollution, littering, water pollution, open defecation), higher proportions of people with tropical and infectious diseases (neglected tropical diseases), more road traffic accidents, and generally poorer quality infrastructure.
In addition, there are also often high unemployment rates, widespread poverty, widespread hunger, extreme poverty, child labour, malnutrition, homelessness, substance abuse, prostitution, overpopulation, civil disorder, human capital flight, a large informal economy, high crime rates (extortion, robbery, burglary, murder, homicide, arms trafficking, sex trafficking, drug trafficking, kidnapping, rape), low education levels, economic inequality, school desertion, inadequate access to family planning services, teenage pregnancy, many informal settlements and slums, corruption at all government levels, and political instability. Unlike developed countries, developing countries lack rule of law.
Access to healthcare is often low.[8] People in developing countries usually have lower life expectancies than people in developed countries, reflecting both lower income levels and poorer public health.[9][10][11] The burden of infectious diseases,[12] maternal mortality,[13][14] child mortality[15] and infant mortality[16][17] are typically substantially higher in those countries. The effects of climate change are expected to impact developing countries more than high-income countries, as most of them have a high climate vulnerability or low climate resilience.[18]
Developing countries often have lower median ages than developed countries. Population aging is a global phenomenon, but population age has risen more slowly in developing countries.[19]
Development aid or development cooperation is financial aid given by foreign governments and other agencies to support developing countries' economic, environmental, social, and political development. If the Sustainable Development Goals which were set up by the United Nations for the year 2030 are achieved, they would overcome many of these problems.
The term "developing countries" has many research theories associated with it (in chronological order):
Common characteristics[edit]
Government, politics and administration[edit]
Many developing countries have only attained full self-determination and democracy after the second half of the 20th century. Many were governed by an imperial European power until decolonization. Political systems in developing countries are diverse, but most states had established some form of democratic governments by the early 21st century, with varying degrees of success and political liberty.[54] The inhabitants of developing countries were introduced to democratic systems later and more abruptly than their Northern counterparts and were sometimes targeted by governmental and non-governmental efforts to encourage participation. 'Effective citizenship' is defined by sociologist Patrick Heller as: "closing [the] gap between formal legal rights in the civil and political arena, and the actual capability to meaningfully practice those rights".[55]
Beyond citizenship, the study of the politics of cross-border mobility in developing countries has also shed valuable light in migration debates, seen as a corrective to the traditional focus on developed countries.[56] Some political scientists identify a 'typology of nationalizing, developmental, and neoliberal migration management regimes' across developing countries.[57]
Country lists[edit]
Developing countries according to International Monetary Fund[edit]
The following are considered developing economies according to the International Monetary Fund's World Economic Outlook Database, April 2023.[136]
Society and culture[edit]
Media coverage[edit]
Western media tends to present a generalized view of developing countries through biased media coverage; mass media outlets tend to focus disproportionately on poverty and other negative imagery. This common coverage has created a dominant stereotype of developing countries: "the 'South' is characterized by socioeconomic and political backwardness, measured against Western values and standards."[153] Mass media's role often compares the Global South to the North and is thought to be an aid in the divide.
Mass media has also played a role in what information the people in developing countries receive. The news often covers developed countries and creates an imbalance of information flow.[154] The people in developing countries do not often receive coverage of the other developing countries but instead gets generous amounts of coverage about developed countries.
