Emerging Powers (Edexcel A Level Geography)

BRIC countries

• There are a number of emerging superpowers including the BRIC countries:
  • Brazil
  • Russia
  • India
  • China
• China is seen as the greatest rival to the dominance of USA as outlined previously

Other G20 members

• There are other members of the G20 who are increasingly powerful
  • The EU is the largest trading bloc in the world
  • Other emerging powers in the G20 include Asian economies of Indonesia, Japan and South Korea

Characteristics of Three Emerging Superpowers

	India	Brazil	Russia
Political	Poor relations with some neighbours including China and Pakistan Member of the G20 and UN Largest democracy in the world Has diplomatic relations with 201 nations	Significant corruption throughout Brazil Politically unstable - far right Bolsonaro has recently been voted out and previously impeached president re-elected	Reduced global influence  Role in supporting President Bashar al-Assad's regime in Syria Invasion of Ukraine in 2022
Economic	The 5th largest economy in the world Increasing influence over global financial decision making Attracts many TNCs and FDI Many people remain in poverty	Produces over 50% of South America's GDP Large amounts of natural resources	11th largest GDP in the world Decreasing influence over global financial decision making Lack of investment by TNCs and FDIs Significant levels of inequality
Military	Third largest military expenditure in the world Second largest armed force A nuclear power	Largest military force in South America Limited role in international conflicts	Fifth largest military force  in the world Wide scale corruption  Ageing weapons and vehicles A nuclear power
Demographic	Second largest population in the world Large English speaking population	Seventh most populated country in the world Population distribution is very uneven - most people live by the coast	Population is experiencing slow decline
Cultural	Bollywood now produces more films a year than Hollywood Indian food popular in many areas of the world	Football team - World Cup winners five times Rio Carnival	Known for literature, classical music, art and ballet

Global environmental governance

• Climate change is an increasing concern
• Any superpower will need to engage with other countries to lead the way on tackling climate change
• This will include a leading role in the UN Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP)
  • COP27 was held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt 

• There are a number of theories to explain the changing patterns of power

World systems theory

• Developed by Wallerstein in 1974
• Whole world is one unit divided into:
  
  • Core
  • Periphery
  • Semi-peripheries

World systems theory

• The World Systems Theory fits the pattern of developed, emerging and developing countries 
• It highlights the inequality in trading patterns

Criticisms of world systems theory

• Too focussed on the economy
• Insufficient focus on culture

Modernisation theory

• The Rostow model of the Stages of Economic Growth was developed in 1960
• Based on the study of 15 European countries
• Rostow suggested that all countries have the potential to break the cycle of poverty and develop through 5 linear stages:
  • Stage 1: Traditional society: economy based on bartering, subsidence farming and little investment
  • Stage 2: Pre-conditions for take off (transitional stage): surpluses are traded through improved infrastructure and shift to manufacturing
  • Stage 3: Take off: industrial and regional growth, investment and political change
  • Stage 4: Drive to maturity: growth is supported through technological innovation, diversification and investment
  • Stage 5 - High mass consumption: consumer orientated society, durable goods production, dominant service sector, higher disposable incomes

Criticisms 

• Model is outdated and too simple
• Model assumes all countries start at the same point (same resources, population, climate etc.)
• Capital is needed to advance from Stage 1
  • The model does not show how that capital is obtained: usually a development aid loan.
  • The debt repayments can delay or even prevent a country from reaching Stage 3 and take off
• Colonialism, and the impact this had on the development of some countries, are not taken into account or are underestimated 

Dependency theory

• The theory was developed by Andre Gunder Frank in the 1960s
• It argues that the:
  • Persistent poverty of developing countries is the result of their dependency on developed countries
  • There is an unequal relationship between the developed and developing countries
  • The ex-colonies were still in a state of dependency when they became independent
• Dependency theory is linked to neo-colonialism as it outlines how:
  • Primary resources are exported from developing countries to developed countries
  • The profits from these goods are low
  • Developing countries do not have the funds to process primary resources which would add value
  • Developed countries often apply tariffs on processed goods which means that developing countries struggle to export processed goods

Dependency theory

Criticisms

• Developed countries have lost their power to control developing countries
• Countries are emerging and becoming more developed semi-periphery countries such as Mexico and India
• The global system is now controlled by TNCs and the World Trade Organisation
• Underdevelopment may be due to internal not external factors