Introduction
Globalization is the integration of trade around the world to form an international marketplace where goods and services produced in one continent go to another. Advanced transport and communication technologies facilitate this integration. It has led to a drastic transformation in the way people live around the world, as more efficient processes result in higher quality products.
Labour exploitation
With globalization came diversified labour. Corporations outsource production of certain goods and services to countries that specialize in their production.
Labour outsourcing saves immensely on production costs as corporations seek to utilize fully the cheap labour available in third world countries. Some even go to the extent of targeting countries that offer subsidies on their establishments.
Critics call this labour exploitation as these corporations take advantage of poor workers desperate enough to offer their services for income enough to provide food for their families for the day.
Moreover, diversion of these resources leads to the reduction in the purchasing power of the population in the home country. This then leads to an increase in unemployment rates in the same country the products will be up for sale.
Environmental degradation
Globalization raised the volume of trading taking place as it gave rise to technology that increases the amount of goods produced per unit of input.
Advances in the financial sector then made this trading more efficient through possibility of making of product orders online and clearing the bills instantly.
Improved standards of living also result from “increased personal incomes brought about by growth-induced trade” (Panayotou) as an added advantage.
Consequently, increase in trade meant increase in pollution from industries and automobiles. Pressure to produce to meet the high demand then led to destruction of cultivating land and forests to avail space for industries.
Changes in climate then follow, condemning the surrounding areas to calamities that include famine and floods. No corporation ever offers to take responsibility for such reactions, as finger pointing ensues when such issues come into light.
Quality of life and economic measures for the family (Central Intelligence Agency)
Life expectancy: 76.11 years
Infant mortality rate: 12.7 deaths/1,000 live births
Number of children per family: N/A
Household income: $9,925
Percentage of population below the poverty line: 19.5% (2003)
Literacy rate: 77.9% (age 15 and over can read and write)
Unemployment rate: 2.4% (2001)
Population with telephones: – 9.358 million (2008) (Mobile Cellular) (% N/A)
- 31.4% (2008) (Main line)
Population using the internet: 60.9% (2008) 4,798,491
Economic Measures for the Country (answer below)
Total GDP: – $186.8 billion (2009 EST.)
GDP real growth rate: -2.7% (2009 EST.)
GDP by sector: – Agriculture: 1.1%
- Industry: 48.5%
- Services: 50.4% (2009 EST.)
Labour force by occupation: – Agriculture: 7%
- Industry: 15%
- Services: 78% (2000 EST.)
Total exports: $174.7 billion (2009 EST.)
Exports as a percentage of GDP: 93.5%
Inflation rate: 1.5% (2009 EST.)
The UAE has proven to be an economic winner after its successful strategies saw it survive the economic recession. “Successful efforts at economic diversification have reduced the portion of GDP based on oil and gas output to 25%” (CIA).
They heavily depended on oil and real estate revenues, which were the hardest hit, but their wide investment portfolio that includes fishing and ship repair cushioned them. Reassurance is that “There are signs of recent increases in hydrocarbon revenues (and) merchandise exports.” (The World Bank Group).
Conclusion
As much as globalization advances, people need to understand that it is both to the positive and negative. Currently, advances are in progress in a drive that intends to patch up the zones rendered useless as a result of activities enhanced by globalization. It is only right that corporations contribute all they can to such drives.
The phrase, “patch up the zones rendered useless as a result of activities enhanced by globalization” means,globalization has resulted in land degradation leading to once fertile land being turned into waste land by irresponsible developments. For example, when minerals are discovered in forests, the forests are cleared to give room for extraction.
After the minerals are exhausted, the land that remains cannot be used yield any vegetation, hence is useless. Therefore, globalization has now led to development of technology to return usefulness back into these pieces of land. The most popular method currently is refilling the pits with soil and replanting vegetation.
Works Cited
Central Intelligence Agency. CIA – The World Factbook. 29 September 2010. Web.
Panayotou, Theodore. Globalization and Environment. Cambridge: Centre for International Development at Havard University, 2000.
The World Bank Group. “The Middle East and North Africa region shows tentative signs of Recovery in 2010.” Web.