CHAPTER 13: Developing Country

1. Geographical Distribution- Classification of the location of population within a country.

2. Occupational Distribution- Classification of population by type of occupation.

3. Age Distribution- Classification of population into different age groups.

4. Sex Distribution- Classification of the population by the number of males & females in a country.

5. Density of Population- The number of people per square kilometre of space.

6. Working Population- Members of population who are willing & able to work.

7. Dependant Population- Numbers of population who cannot support themselves & are dependant on others.

8. Birth Rate- Numbers of live birth per year per 1,000 of the population.

9. Death Rate- Numbers of death per year per 1,000 of the population.

10. Calculate Birth Rate Birth Rate= Numbers of Birth / Total Population X 1,000


11. Calculate Death Rate Death Rate= Numbers of Death / Total Population X 1,000


12. Natural Increase- The difference between the birth rate & the death rate.

13. Calculate Natural Increase

Natural Increase= Birth Rate - Death Rate

14. Net Emigration- More people emigrate (leave) than immigrate (arrive).

15. Net Immigration- More people immigrate than emigrate.

16. Factors that determine the size of the population
a) Birth Rate
b) Death Rate
c) Migration

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17. Under Population- When the resources are not being used sufficiently & lead to wastages.

18. Overpopulation- When the resources are insufficient to meet the demand on them.

19. Optimum Population- When the resources are fully utilised by the population.

20. Reasons for the High Birth Rate

a) Lack of family planning.
b) High infant mortality. Parents want to have many children in the hope that several will live.
c) Need for more farmhands. More children mean more profit earned.
d) Family-oriented. Religious belief.

21. Reasons for the High Death Rate

a) Problem of disease, plague & natural disaster.
b) Shortage of food due to poor harvests.
c) Lack of medical facilities.
d) Lack of cleaning drinking water.

22. Reasons for the falling birth rate

a) More effective family planning.
b) Lower infant mortality rate with the availability of medical facilities.
c) With the availability of machines, this has reduced the need to have more children to help out on the farms.
d) Higher level of education.
e) As people become more educated, they might want a higher standard of living.

23. Reasons for the falling death rate

a) Availability of medical facilities. This has increases the life expectancy of the people.
b) Availability of clean water supply & better sanitation facilities.
c) Improvements in food production.
d) Better transportation facilities so that food & medical facilities can reach to an area quickly.
e) Falling infant mortality rate with the availability of medical facilities.

24. Dependency Ratio- Showing the number of people supported by one people in the work-force.

25. Population Pyramid- A graph showing age distribution & sex distribution.

26. Effects of an ageing population

- An ageing population results mainly from the low birth rate & low death rate in the country. People in developed countries are better educated & enjoy a higher standard of living. Some people prefer not to have children in order to enjoy a carefree life.

a) More retired people & eventual increase in dependency ratio.
b) Increases the amount of money for pensions.
c) Higher spending on medical facilities for the aged.
d) Most of the aged people do not work. With the falling employment rate & decrease in demand for products & services.
e) Overproduction of goods for the aged. E.g.: Walking sticks.
f) The aged might not move to areas where jobs are available.

27. Calculate dependency ratio

Dependency Ratio= Dependent Population / Working Population

28. Characteristics of Population Pyramids of Developing Countries
a) It has a broad base because of a high number of young dependants below the age of 15.
b) Young people are more than old people.
c) The proportion of males & females is almost the same.
d) People in the older age group support large number of young dependants.

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29. Characteristics of Population Pyramids of Developed Countries.
a) Less broad base because of a fewer young people.
b) There are more old people than young people.
c) It has smaller dependent population.
d) It shows a higher life expectancy.
e) The proportion of males & females is about the same.

30. Effects of an Over-Populated Country
a) Low per capita GNP.
b) Health hazard.
c) Lack of educational facilities.
d) Housing & slum problems.
e) Air, water & land pollution.
f) Lack of food
g) Traffic congestion
h) Unemployment
i) Less savings as most income is spent on consumer goods.


31. Rural Depopulation- Moving of population from rural areas to urban areas.

32. Advantages of an increasing in population
a) Increase in the market size. More people would need more demand for all kinds for goods & services. It will be possible for firms to specialize in the production of certain goods.
b) Increase in investment.
c) More young people are more willing to move in search for jobs.
d) Facilitates mobility of labour.

33. Disadvantages of an increasing in population
a) It may lead to a fall in the standard of living. Not enough consumers goods to be purchased since most of the investment will be in capital rather than consumer goods.
b) It can cause more environmental problem. City become crowded & rise of slump areas.
c) Increase pressure on the availability supply of land.

34. Unemployment- Worker is willing to work but is unable to find a job.

35. Types of Unemployment

a) Frictional Unemployment- Workers are temporarily unemployed while moving from one job to another.

b) Structural / Technological Unemployment
- Demand for labour are reduced & switching to machinery.

c) Seasonal Unemployment
- Unemployment for some part of the year which experiences marked seasonal patterns of demand. E.g.: In winter, crops cannot grow well.

d) Cyclical / Demand Deficit Unemployment
- Unemployment due to lack of aggregate demand brought about the trade cycle. Aggregate demand consists of consumption, investment, government expenditure & net exports. The fall in consumption of goods & services can be due to several factors.

E.g.: Falling income, poor economic expectations & high taxes. The fall in investments can due to rising interest rates, poor business outlook & falling profits. Fall in demand for goods & services & companies might be affected. This could lead to a rise in the level of unemployment due to the laying off of workers because of plant closures.

e) Residual Unemployment- People who are disabled or mentally ill have difficulties looking for jobs.

f) Hidden Unemployment
- Unemployment found in agricultural sectors. If a certain number of people are removed from the sectors, there will be no reduction in the level of output.

g) International Unemployment- People are unemployed because of a fall in demand for domestically produced goods.

h) Voluntary Unemployment- People choose to remain unemployed.

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36. Problems of Unemployment

- To an Individual
a) Loss of earnings.
b) Lack of self esteem.
c) Reduced spending power.
d) Loss of skills & employability.

- To Other workers
a) They have to pay extra tax.
b) They have to accepts pay cuts to keep their jobs.
c) Loss of job security.

- To Government
a) Collect less money income tax & VAT.
b) More money to pay out on benefits.
c) Less money to spend on education & health.
d) May become unpopular.

- To Local Areas / Economy
a) Less spending.
b) Businesses will suffer because of the fall in demand.
c) Crime may increase.
d) The country is not using its resources available effectively. Become less competitive.
e) Waste of resources.


37. Solution to Unemployment

a) Cyclical Unemployment

- The government use macroeconomic policies to increase the level of aggregate demand. This policies also involve lower interest rates or lower direct taxes. Encourages investment from foreign multinational companies in the economy.

b) Frictional Unemployment - Improve job information.
- The government can create some part-time jobs to unemployed workers.

c) Structural Unemployment
- Retrain the workers to meet the demand for a new set of skills. - Improve the mobility of labour.

d) Hidden Unemployment
- There must be major reforms of unemployment benefits so that the system will not be abused.

38. Other problems faced by Developing Countries

a) Over-reliance on primary sector.
b) Social & cultural factors that hinder economic growth.
c) Low labour productivity.
d) Lack of savings & investments.

39. Solutions to problems faced by developing countries.
a) Agricultural development should involve full exploitation & modernization.
b) Developing countries have attempted to develop their manufacturing & service.
c) Keeping the population growth rates low so that each person can enjoy a higher income &standard of living.
d) Increasing the rate of capital formation.
e) Raising literacy rate.

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