Many countries today face the challenge of few natural resources for development, yet countries abundant with natural resources are among the world's most underdeveloped and impoversished. The phenomenon known as the resource curse has resulted in dependence on a single industry for economic growth in countries like Nigeria and Gabon. The implications of the resource curse include slow development and continued poverty for the general population. In Africa, though there is significant progression towards democracy, the corrupt central governments do not distribute the profits, resulting in continued poverty and potential catastrophic economic crash when the resources run out.
Sources:
Wellman, Christopher. "The Resource Curse and Leif Wenar’s “Clean Hands Trust”." Cato Unbound. 16 May 2008. Web. 08 Sept. 2010.
Ross, Michael. "The Political Economy of the Resource Curse." UCLA. Web. 3 Sept. 2010.
Great topic! I look forward to listening to your research and conclusions. This topic has always interested me.
ReplyDeleteGreat topic! IF you've read or heard about the book "Guns, Germs and Steel," then you know about the concept of the resource curse as it traces back to the very beginning of civilization.
ReplyDeleteAs a note, make sure you stay informative and that your speech doesn't take on a persuasive tone. So tell us what the "curse" refers to, what it's about... but make sure you don't try to influence the class' perception of what is wrong, right, or what role they should play in the situation. You are MORE than welcome to develop this speech further for your persuasive speech assignment later in the semester, though.