There is a widespread opinion that the poor territories deserve it themselves — they did not want to work, and so on, that is, their mental characteristics are “to blame.” To answer why some countries are rich and others are poor, one needs a comprehensive analysis of the situation. This essay will discuss the reasons why there are rich and poor states and how these differences appear.
Several reasons are profoundly discussed by professionals who research the topic of countries’ development. Among the primary factors that determine a country’s wealth or poverty mentioned by analysts are state institutions of power. Specialists state that rich countries have “good” institutions while developing countries have “bad” institutions of governance (Acemoglu & Robinson, 2013). For instance, there is a direct correlation between poverty and corruption. The wealthiest countries in the world are the least corrupt, while the most corrupt are the poorest. When countries are corrupt, they cannot collect enough taxes for the normal functioning of government institutions, and to overcome poor economic conditions (Acemoglu & Robinson, 2013).
The second reason why some countries are poor and some are rich is geographical location and conditions. Emerging countries are mostly located in tropical regions, while rich countries are northern, and the majority of them found valuable natural resources, such as oil, gas, and minerals, that they could sell and get financial help from others (Dodd, 2016). Many issues arise for developing countries in the tropics, such as complex weather conditions influencing agriculture and soil. People in the southern states are also subject to a monstrous list of diseases that do not maintain good social conditions.
Finally, some professionals mention cultural differences as another factor that influences the prosperity of countries. It is suggested that there is a correlation between religion and wealth: it turns out that the fewer people believe, the more likely they are to be rich (Stastna, 2019). Although the U.S. can be named an outlier, the American primary religion suggests people create a material world that implies building solid economic ground. Overall, it can be summarized that several reasons might have influenced countries’ economic development that became either rich or poor. Still, it is essential to consider the combination of factors to explore the situation more in-depth.
References
Acemoglu, D. & Robinson, J. (2013). Why nations fail: The origins of power, prosperity, and poverty. Currency.
Dodd, S. (2016). Like it or not, poor countries are increasingly dependent on mining and oil & gas. United Nations University. Web.
Stastna, K. (2019). Do countries lose religion as they gain wealth? CBC News. Web.