Exam1 winter
Nameof Student
Exam1 winter
1)Todaro (2000) Chapter 2 Question 5 (Page 66)
Thereis a resilient correlation between labor productivity, health, andthe level of income. Poor health lowers the levels of productivity.When individuals who are expected to produce labor are affected bydisease, they lack the ability to work thus decreasing productivity(Perkins et al., 2012). The same is related to income level.Inability to work due to poor health status results in low-incomelevels among the affected individuals. The pervasiveness of HIV/AIDS,malaria and other diseases common in Africa have been associated withthe economic status of most nations in the continent. With thepresence of such diseases, workforce is affected hence poor laborproductivity, and a resultant low-income level. Poor health statusalso leads to an increase in dependency (Todaro, 2000). The presenceof a high number of sick individuals increases the levels ofdependence on aid from the government and relatives, which in turnaffects the levels of income. Also, good health encourages laborproductivity. In circumstances where the workers’ health status istaken care of, there will be very few cases of sick-offs, improvedlabor production, and an elevated income level.
2)Galbraith (1962) present eight assumptions about the causes ofpoverty (pages 15-19). Please select one of these assumptions anddiscuss its merits and possible remedial actions.
Amongthe eight causes of poverty, Galbraith (1962) suggests thatoverpopulation is one of the contributing factors of poverty indeveloping nations. High levels of poverty in most developingcountries can be linked to the uncontrolled population growth in mostof these nations. Overpopulation limits the amount of resourcesavailable for individuals in a society thus resulting in poverty(Malik, 2015). In overpopulated countries, governments find it hardto provide essential needs such as education and health services toits citizen. The resultant incapacity of the government leads toelevated levels of poverty in the society as experienced in mostdeveloping nations of Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Overpopulationhas by itself been characterized as a cause of poverty in the sensethat nations which experience high population growth undergo economicagony due to job limited markets and overexploited resources (Malik,2015). Unmitigated population growth leads to scarcity of Earth’savailable resources thus affecting sustainability and resulting topoverty. Overpopulation is, therefore, a factor that may give rise topoverty in a nation. Solutions to overpopulation include educatingthe citizens of the country, encouraging the use of family planningmethods and provision of sex education to sexually active groups andcouples.
3)Easterly (2012) presents the tale of Thomas Cresap in “Intermezzo:In Search of a River” (pages 16-19) and comes to a conclusion thatCresap was dragged out of poverty. Please discuss the economicgrowth elaborated in the story and how poverty was reduced.
Thomasworked hard to get out of poverty. This can be seen throughout thestory as he makes several attempts to develop despite the manyhurdles such as war and disputes, which thwarted his move foreconomic growth. Thomas first established an important investmentstrategy. He invested on land. He fought to acquire land along theOhio River, which was navigable thus posing a significant potentialfor economic growth. This was one of the wittiest moves whichcontributed to shifting from poverty to prosperity. He laterincreased the value of the land by building his roads. The Cresapsbenefited from the fertile lands left behind by Thomas after thecolonial wars (Easterly, 2012). The location of the lands along theOhio River provided excellent opportunities for economic growth. Thesoils were fertile hence suitable for farming resulting in productsthat would be sold for generation of income, and provision of foodsecurity. After several years, industries developed along the riverthus providing employment opportunities to the Cresaps. The growingAmerican economy was mainly focused in areas closer to transportmeans such as rivers thus enhancing economic growth. These factorsincreased economic growth and contributed to pulling Cresaps alongout of poverty into prosperity.
References
Easterly,W. R., & Levine, R. (2012). TheEuropean origins of economic development.Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research.
Malik,S. Y. (2015). Population, Poverty and Gender: A Nexus ofInterconnected Issues in Achieving Universal Primary Education inPakistan. PakistaniJournal of Social Sciences (PJSS), 35(2),1097-1108.
Perkins,D. H., Radelet, S., Lindauer, D. L., & Block, S. A. (2012).Economics of development.
Todaro,M. P. (2000). Economicdevelopment.Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.