Globalization/Regionalism/World Debt Essay
Globalization/Regionalism/World Debt Essay
Q1- the maximum wordings for this question is 1400 words or 2 pages single spaced.
The process of regionalization and the creation of regional blocs are contrevential developments. Do regionalization and regional blocs contribute to the process of globalization or are the origins and purposes of these regional developments too varied and distinct to be classified as parallel to the process of globalization. Globalization/Regionalism/World Debt Essay
Make reference to specific process of regionalization and regional bloc in addressing the question. Please provide a minimum of 2 reference (articles, journals, books..)
Q2- the maximum wordings for this question is 1400 words or 2 pages single spaced.
How has the third world debts crisis and the managing of this crisis by the first world altered the possibilities for meaningful development between the various regions of the regions of the developing world? How has the process of globalization altered the relationship between developed and developing nations (what remains constant and what if anything has changed).
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Make reference to specific nation-states and regions in addressing this question. Please provide a minimum of 2 references (articles, Journals, books)
QUESTION 1
The Process of Regionalization and The Creation of Regional Blocs and Their Contribution to The Process of Globalization
The process of regionalization and the creation of regional blocs has always elicited contradictory views in terms of the impacts they have in the general globalization. Regionalization on one hand aims at targeting a certain region and integrating its formational elements to result into a more comprehensive and multidimensional process which not only focuses on the aspects of trade and economic development, but also on issues to do with environment, social, and security. Regional blocs on the other hand are aimed at eliminating or reducing trade barriers, thus increasing the economic efficiency and the competitiveness of the region’s productions. Although both the regionalization and the regional blocs are expressed as contravention developments, their contravening aspects are aimed at dealing with the challenges that have been brought along by the globalization (Ardalan, 2010).Globalization/Regionalism/World Debt Essay
Furthermore, the growing interdependence of the world economies as an impact of the globalization has resulted in individual countries and states, finding ways that can maximize their competitiveness in the global map. Countries along with their guarded domestic economies can not break the economic, social, political and cultural barriers as the world moves on. This has therefore created interests as well as necessitated the countries to join together as regional blocs to eliminate these barriers in order to prosper and satisfy their economies through participation and agreements that protects and respects each other interests beyond their common borders.
Nevertheless, regionalization and the regional blocs are part of the globalization players whose contributions and impact cannot be underestimated. Right before the second world war, the cooperation that was largely seen between the nations emanated from the political interests and thus the regional blocks existed as allies who had a common agenda, especially when it came to war and conquering of territories. This would largely change after the second world war where the nations started to weigh themselves on how they can rebuild their economies, as well as remain competitive in the global arena. It was at this moment that trading blocs emerged as a way of overcoming the challenges of globalization, as well as strengthening economies to sustain the foreseen future.
Moreover, regionalism and trade blocs have always been associated with eliminating economic barriers more so those that deal with trade, including customs, import and export regulations, quotas as well as taxation. However, the modern regionalism has taken a step beyond a focus on the trade aspects alone. The new global challenges have necessitated cooperation between states in a broader aspect, such as technology, politics, cultural integration, environmental and security issues (Ardalan, 2010). This has not only enabled the regional strength, but also assisted in the building and promotion of regional peace and cooperation. In the process, the globalization effect has continued to be impacted positively by the existence of the regional blocs and the processes of regionalization (Ardalan, 2010).
On the other hand, joining a trade bloc involves surrendering some of the individual economic sovereignty to allow integration and a balanced level ground where every partner interest is considered and respected (Gaillard, 2014). As such, regional blocs create harmony which is an important aspect in the globalization process. Moreover, regionalization and the regional blocs are easy to manage and therefore, the aspects of quality, production, growth, as well as innovation are easier to manage and maximize, thus placing the member states within a given bloc in a more competitive advantage in the global arena due to effectiveness brought along by the cooperation and pulling of resources together. What’s more, local industries are forced to match up with the established regional standards, a fact that promotes the economy of a country through increased labor market, expanded market for goods, as well as access to quality goods and services.
However, there are several hampering factors that negatively contribute to the process of globalization. Regionalization and the regional blocs are often seen as regional forces who’s their drive for an agenda is limited to the regions that they represent (Bilal & Nicolaides, 2002). As international bodies such as the United Nations (UN) and World Trade Organization (WTO) reflect the globalization agenda of a ‘one world, one nation’, the regionalization and the regional blocs tend to hamper the spirit of this cooperation and thus creating regional interests which are unhealthy within the general view of the globalization process. Although regional blocs and regionalization tend to emulate the spirit of maximizing the benefits of the members, it may be on the other hand limiting their potential in the global arena as states within a regional bloc compete with a limited number of members whose interests may not be matching those outside the regional bloc boundaries (Chang & Winters, 2002).Globalization/Regionalism/World Debt Essay
Secondly, regionalization and the regional blocs are sometimes seen as a big hindrance to the Individual country trade, political and social potentials. A regional bloc member may have potentials that can be explored outside the regional bloc within the rest of the global players, but due constraints elected by the member states within the bloc, they may be barred from entering into agreements with other specific states without the permission of the bloc. This hinders the potential of specific countries into exploring and entering into full trade potential with other global players, hence hampering the spirit of the globalization process (Ardalan, 2010).
Thirdly, most of the regional blocs and regionalization are determined by the physical geographical location. As such, a willing partner in a different geographical location may be barred from entering in a trade block just for the reason of being in a different geographical location. This fact creates strict territorial cooperation which may reduce cooperation among countries from different regions across the globe. Furthermore, regionalization may create discrimination in trade as non-members may be treated with strict conditions that may discourage cooperation. Therefore, in this context, the regionalization and the regional blocs can be viewed as a potential hindrance to the spirit of globalization.
On the other hand, regionalization and the regional blocs have for a long time seen as a benefit only a few. Regional potentials vary from one state to the other and so is the production of goods and services. In a situation where only a few member states have the potential to break-even or produce specific goods, other members may find it hard to compete even on a level ground. This has been witnessed in the NAFTA agreement between USA, Mexico and Canada, where Mexico and Canada seem to have less potential in terms of production, which in the long term may not fully benefit within the regional bloc (Bilal & Nicolaides, 2002). The process of globalization strives to achieve equality in exchange of benefits that it brings along with and as such, in this context, the regionalization and the regional blocs may seem to contradict this fact.
In a recap, regionalization and the regional blocs as well as globalization seem interconnected and their structural establishments are the ones which hold the potential to hinder each other. As such, globalization aspect carries along with it the uniformity and standardization of doing things which can only be achieved gradually. Regionalization and the regional blocs therefore should be among the milestone aspects of completing full potential of the globalization. Any contravening opinion or idea that threatens the globalization process should not be incorporated in the regionalization process and as such, regionalization and the regional blocs should be the pathway and reflection of global cooperation but not hindrances to the globalization spirit.Globalization/Regionalism/World Debt Essay
QUESTION 2
The Third World Debts Crisis and The Possibilities for Meaningful Development Between the Various Regions of The Regions of The Developing World
The debt crisis within the third world countries has continued to hamper development within the regions due to the poor management of the crisis by the first world. Since the mid 1970’s, the third world debt crisis has continued to grow, with Africa being the most affected continent as it comprises of most developing countries who’s their development agenda are always positioned with borrowing as their core funding (Malhotra, 2001). As the interest surge and export value decrease, coupled with poor debt management on both the borrower and funding entities, the third word countries have continued to get deeper into the debt crisis and this situation is not ending soon.
As a matter of fact, the third world debts crisis and the managing of this crisis by the first world has greatly altered the possibilities for meaningful development between the various regions of the developing world. To address the economic plight of the third world economies, borrowing remains the most potential way of assisting these countries in the quest of alleviating poverty that has struggled these economies to the ground. With little or no manufacturing potentials, hindered by slow economic growth, many developing countries have opted into importing nearly everything, a situation which has continued to worsen the situation of financial independence. Therefore, external debts have remained the only viable option they have at hand.
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Nevertheless, most borrowing is done as way of infrastructure development for these countries, to provide a potential environment that is conducive for the citizens and investors to conduct businesses, as well as provision of the basic amenities (Malhotra, 2001). As this is a well thought idea, there exists a hidden catch. The loans either advanced by individual foreign government or international fund agencies such as the World Bank and the IMF, are advanced with attached conditions that the borrower must meet in a given period. As such, these loans are to be repaid and most of them are conditional loans, which means there is a lot of control in the manner that they will be invested. Most of them are controlled by interest rates, project specification, terms of use policies, amount, as well as the repayment period. Globalization/Regionalism/World Debt Essay
With the conditions attached, and more so on the repayment terms, many countries have found it difficult to raise enough capital to repay the debts, leading into a crisis. As a result, many countries have opted into taking austerity measures where money meant for crucial services within the sector has been diverted into repaying the loans (Stocker, 2016). This has resulted in hampering development and as such, the intended loan impacts have continued to hinder development, especially on the social aspects of the society where the citizens continue to suffer as government struggle to repay debts (Malhotra, 2001). The rise in global interest rates has also increased the cost of servicing debt, thus paying more than what was originally planned. The extra interest rate is a cost foregone and should have been used internally for development purposes or for recurrent expenditure. Therefore, the developing countries debt crisis greatly hampers the development of crucial sectors within their regions.
On the other hand, the management of the debt crisis by the first world has also contributed greatly on the decreased development in the third world regions (Ahmad et al., 2016). To curb the loss experienced by the inflation rate, first world nations attaches adjustable interest rates to the loans that they advance to the developing countries. This translates to the increase in repayment amount in terms of interest which would have been diverted into the borrower’s crucial sectors. Furthermore, due to political and regional interests, the first world nations have continued to increase the debt ceiling for the developing countries, leading to unmanageable debt that has resulted into a crisis. Most third world countries are not potentially able to repay their debts on time and thus any top-up ignites the already existing crisis in terms of debt repayment.
- The Process of Globalization and How It Has Altered the Relationship Between Developed and Developing Nations
The globalization process has led to the interdependence of different countries in key area sectors such as economic, cultural, social, technological, political, as well as security sectors. As such, due to the potential that developed countries hold in these key sectors, most of the developing countries tend to partner with them in the development and funding of projects within the sectors. This has seen increased partnership between the developed and the developing nations across the globe. On the other hand, more developed countries also reach out to the developing countries as they are potential market into their goods and services as they make efforts in overcoming the international barriers created by the globalization process.Globalization/Regionalism/World Debt Essay
One key observation on the relationship between the developing and developed nations is the continued participation and partnership within the key sectors. Establishment of multinational company branches has been a notable key globalization effort where goods and services are availed in real time within the market or the goods and services are customized to fit the specific market to increase the market penetration (Malhotra et al., 2005). The investment interest within the developing countries has seen increased funding and direct investment from developed nations, a fact that has strengthened the relationship among the member partners. This has aided in foreign currency earnings as well as stirred economic growth and global peace process due to integration among nations across the globe.
Furthermore, the process of globalization has impacted largely on the culture factor which has seen culture exchange within the process, especially between the developed and the developing nations. As such, there has been a wide acceptance of major languages around the world, with developed nations making efforts to transfer the learning of their national native language to the rest of the world, especially in the developing world. In the recent past, Spanish, English, French, Chinese and Arabic have become part of the global culture, with increased proficiency in spoken and written language that extends beyond the common native regions that the languages are familiar. French, UK, China and Spain have been cited as the developed nations that are at the forefront in extending the aspect of language for adoption as a global culture. This has not only strengthened relationships, but as well, created a conducive environment where information can be shared and understood to make the world a better place. All these processes can be attributed to the globalization effect (Malhotra et al., 2005).
Although the globalization process has been hailed as one that has brought the globe together, there has been notable drawbacks, especially when it comes to the relationship between the developed and the developing nations. The uncontrollable debt crisis in the developing countries, as well as increased political and economic crisis has largely been attributed to the deteriorating effects that the developing nations continue to experience, establishing an imbalance in the benefits of the relationships between the developing and the developed nations (Stocker, 2016).
References
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Chang, W., & Winters, L. A. (2002). How regional blocs affect excluded countries: The price
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Malhotra, N. K., Ulgado, F. M., Agarwal, J., Shainesh, G., & Wu, L. (2005). Dimensions of
service quality in developed and developing economies: Multi-country cross-cultural comparisons. International Marketing Review, 22(3), 256-278. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/02651330510602204
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Stocker, M. L. (2016). Crisis facilitates policy change, not liberalization. Journal of Financial
Economic Policy, 8(2), 248-267. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JFEP-11-2015-0064 Globalization/Regionalism/World Debt Essay
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