Myths about economic development, debunked

● What are the weaknesses and strengths of the Human Development Index (HDI) as an indicator of progress in comparison to GDP/GNP per capita? (Total 5 marks)

the strengths of the HDI include:

• taking in account many other indicators and factors for progress not only the GDP/GNI per capita 

• Shows the quality of life, such as education, life expectancy and access to sanitation

• Helps to determine whether the country is considered developed or developing

The weaknesses of using HDI include:

• Income, knowledge and GDP are confounding variables and are inter-related. 

• while using HDI it is hard to determine which factors influenced others

• Doesn't show the variation of data within a country, such as inequality 

● Explain two reasons why increased investment in education is essential for development in developing economies. (Total 4 marks)

Developing economies are often determined to be that due to low quality of the labour force, meaning the main or only output of the economy are primary commodities. therefore having a labour force with higher education helps for the economy to expand and develop different production opportunities. 
As well as higher education means further expansion or developing of healthcare and education systems through the new labour that is available for the vacancies. 


● What evidence would indicate to an economist that a country is experiencing economic development as well as economic growth? (10 marks)

improvement in quality of life, better education, average life span, lower unemployment, increasing GDP, better money supply, decrease in prices for medicine.


● Evaluate the strategies (based on your findings in gapminder) that may be used to achieve economic development. Refer to real world examples in your answer. (15 marks)

I found a great answer to this, but I don't think it would be too useful to write it out, so I'll just leave this ling here:  https://mudit92.wordpress.com/2010/02/11/rwanda-strategies-to-achieve-economic-growthdevelopment