2.1 Case studies

Question 1

How did joining the WTO affect Pakistan’s fishing industry?

Answer 1

• before there was a 200 mile exclusion zone around its coast so only Pakistan’s fishing boats could fish there
• in 1995 Pakistan joined the WTO
• after this, TNC-owned deep sea trawlers were allowed to fish in Pakistan’s waters
• TNCs catch most of fish so Pakistan’s fishing communities left in poverty
• in 2013, charity ActionAid found that Pakistan’s fish stocks were falling dangerously low

Question 2

Gains from Ghana’s role in cocoa trade

Answer 2

• one of world’ largest cocoa producers
• since its independence in 1957, the British government no longer set the price farmers would receive
• food prices down because of increased imports
• futures market ensures that products will be bought in the future

Question 3

Losses from Ghana’s role in cocoa trade

Answer 3

• TNCs can also get cocoa from other growers (e.g. Ivory Coast), which puts downward pressure on prices
• EU sets tariffs of processes cocoa but not raw cocoa; Ghana could gain more money but tariffs drive up the price for buyers
• ghana joined WTO in 1995; before this Ghana subsidised cocoa growers but WTO does not allow this; this has caused farmer to fall into poverty or give up farming

Question 4

Globalisation in India

Answer 4

• sweeping reforms took place in 1991
• India’s TNCs have grown in size and influence
• until 2013, foreign retailers could only open by agreeing to form a partnership with a local Indian business
• these rules have deterred other foreign retailers
• 90% of India’s businesses are family owned

Question 5

Issues with cotton farming in India

Answer 5

• Indian farmers mainly grow cotton
• 2/3 of the crops were ruined by worms
• Farmers now have to spray pesticides which is harmful to the farmers

Question 6

Impacts of use of pesticides in Indian cotton farms (7)

Answer 6

• People end up dying from the pesticide poisoning
• Farmers go into debt from buying the pesticides
• 7,000 farmers committed suicide by drinking the pesticides
• Workers life expectancy is 35 years
• symptoms = constant headaches, always feeling nauseous, cant breath properly
• Organic cotton will decrease all of this bad impacts
• However companies do not want to invest in it as it is more expensive

Question 7

China before the 1978 Open door policy

Answer 7

• prior to 1978, China was poor, politically isolated, and not in the global economy
• under mao, millions died from famine and most lived rurally in poverty

Question 8

China’s 1978 Open Door Policy

Answer 8

• in 1978, Xiaoping began ‘open door’ reforms where China embraced globalisation under one party rule
• reforms included: controls of number of children, allowing farmers to make profit

Question 9

Next 30 years after China’s 1978 open door policy (5)

Answer 9

• 300 million people left rural areas for cities
• registration system called hukou prevented rural villages from emptying
• 200 more cities with more than 1mil inhabitants
• urban mega region of 120mil people in cities in the Pearl River Delta
• urbanisation led to the growth of low-wage factories

Question 10

long-term impacts of China’s 1978 open door policy

Answer 10

• by the 1990s, 50% of China’s GDP was generated in SEZs
• by 2015 - many workers were making $40/day or making high quality goods
• today China is the world’s largest economy, and 400million people have escaped poverty since reforms began

Question 11

Why is North Korea a switched-off place?

Answer 11

• autocracy run by a single family
• no underseas data cables connecting North Korea to anywhere else
• 100% literacy rate
• <0.1% of people have internet access
• 178th on political freedom index
• big divide between elite + ordinary people
• $78.8m net official development assistance

Question 12

The Sahel Region location

Answer 12

• Dry grasslands located south of the Sahara (West Africa)
• e.g. Chad, Burkina Faso, Mali

Question 13

Why is the Sahel Region a ‘Switched off place’

Answer 13

• mismanagement of natural resources
• colonial history
• landlocked countries
• struggle to attract FDI
• extreme environmental conditions increase cost of infrastructure

Question 14

Globalisation in the Sahel region

Answer 14

• global links are shallow
• subsistence farmers often dependent on food aid
• some grow cash crops for TNCs but wages are very low
• so global brands don’t view these places as viable markets
• change may come soon as there is rapid economic growth in neighbouring countries; e.g. Mali’s folk music has gained a following on YouTube

Question 15

Describe the global shift to China

Answer 15

• 1970s+80s, manufacturing began to move from Europe/USA to Asia
• changes in economic policy allowed for this
• cities like Shenzhen offered low-wage labour
• since 2000, China has been largest recipient of FDI
• China’s global trade increased from 3% (2001) to 10% (2013)
• 2015, over 150 cities with populations over 1million

Question 16

Global shift China - benefits

Answer 16

• Investment in infrastructure; by 2016 China has an advanced railway system, 250 airports
• reduction in poverty; between 1981 and 2010, people in poverty reduced by 680m and extreme poverty reduced from 84% to 10%
• increases in urban incomes
• better education & training; 94% of over 15s are literate (compared to 20% in 1950), big rural-urban divide in education spending

Question 17

Global shift China - costs

Answer 17

• loss of productive farmland; industrialisation caused over 3mil hectares of land to be polluted with heavy metals
• increase in unplanned settlements; increased demand for urban housing, land prices increased, forced to build on farmland
• pollution and health problems; air and water pollution, extreme water shortages, respiratory problems
• 40% of China’s farmland suffering land degradation (erosion, acidification, deforestation, intense grazing)
• over-exploitation of resources; China has to import from Africa and Latin America
• loss of biodiversity

Question 18

Deindustrialisation in Manchester

Answer 18

• deindustrialisation after WW2
• 1971-81 lost 50,000 of full time jobs and 17.5% of population
• area described as empty; social exclusion, crime, deteriorating living conditions
• uneven development driven by globalisation and facilitated by UK government
• late 1970s government stopped trying to spread growth among UK cities
• 1986 ‘Big Bang’ deregulated London’s financial markets to establish it as a financial centre

Question 19

Responses to deindustrialisation in Manchester

Answer 19

• city leaders employed economic strategies to improve its position in global markets
• turnaround extremely successful
• there are still problems in other deindustrialised regions

Question 20

Causes of deindustrialisation in Redcar

Answer 20

• North Yorkshire seaside town
• main employer was Teeside steelworks
• steelworks closed in 2015 after a few struggling years and being in operation for 140 years
• more than 300 workers lost jobs

Question 21

Impacts of deindustrialisation in Redcar

Answer 21

• dereliction; industrial buildings and land used by steelworkers abandoned
• depopulation & contamination; many residents forced to move out so streets left empty and vulnerable to vandalism and flytipping
• unemployment is 8.3% in redcar (compared to 5.3% nationally)
• deprivation; among 20% most deprived for healthcare, 25% of children in low-income families, life expectancy lower than national average

Question 22

causes of Karachi’s growing population

Answer 22

• megacity in Pakistan
• population of over 24 million
• estimated to be growing at rate of 5% annually.
• Most migrants are drawn from rural areas of Pakistan, but some come from neighbouring countries such as Afghanistan

Question 23

Impacts of unplanned settlements in Karachi

Answer 23

• Services are provided on the basis of neighbourhoods pooling their resources to lay sewerage lines to the nearest disposal points, which are often natural storm drainage channels, rather than a proper system.
• The efficiency of the city’s waste management is severely compromised as a result.
• Poverty causes the political and social alienation of young people, which in turn leads to ethnic violence and crime

Question 24

Conditions in unplanned settlements in Karachi

Answer 24

• homes made out of bamboo and industrial waste material in the dry riverbeds within the city.
• on landfill sites and informal garbage sorting
• residents pay rent to criminal gangs supported by the police or officials of local government agencies.
• no legal electricity or water connections, no schools, health centres or open spaces.
• outer settlements expanding due to city government’s failure to manage the structure of the city and the great difficulty of finding a place to live in a more established slum near the city centre.

Question 25

Elite migration in London

Answer 25

• flows of skilled wealthy migrants to London
• in 2013, 83% of property deals involved foreign buyers
• mostly from Qatar and Russia
• Qatari investment bought into the Shard, Canary Wharf, Harrods, Olympic village
• between 2004 and 2014, a third of property sales were to Russian, which lead to house price inflation

Question 26

Low-wage migrants - UAE and Qatar

Answer 26

• small populations so recruit manual workers from overseas
• 90% of UAE’s workforce are migrants; their visa are tied to particular jobs so there is a risk of deportation
• led to rapid building of infrastructure for high-end international tourism & services
• in 2014, 1.4m migrants in Qatar (over 400k from Nepal)
• many working on stadia for 2022 world cup - accidents are common

Question 27

What does occupy London believe?

Answer 27

• anti-globalisation group
• want new political & environmental system that puts people, democracy, and the environment before profit
• want structural change promoting global equality and a sustainable economic system
• stand with the globally oppressed

Question 28

Describe the Paralymic movement

Answer 28

• first official games in 1960 Rome
• athletes from 159 nations took part in 2016 Rio games
• aimed to create an elite sports competition for people with disabilities that would be equivalent to the Olympic Games.

Question 29

What does the Paralymic Movement suggest about globalisation?

Answer 29

• the games set a precedent that has now been formalised.
• The success of the Paralympic movement alongside the globalisation of sports by key players such as the International Olympic Committee shows how globalisation can create new opportunities for disadvantaged groups.

Question 30

Describe Bhutan’s culture

Answer 30

• distinct culture, language, and traditions
• values GNH (happiness) over GDP
• heritage sites bill, which protects monuments + cultural traditions
• Bhutan Broadcast service
• national dress in government meetings and schools

Question 31

Changes in Bhutan

Answer 31

• In 2002 farming accounted for 26% of its GDP but by 2011 that was down to 16%
• In 2004, the country had around 800km of roads, 2012 increased to 5,500km
• Bhutan has a promise to keep 60% of its landmass as forest; however roads keep on coming
• 11 more hydropower plants are expected to open
• Poverty rates have halved in less than a decade
• Electricity arrived in 2012
• money raised from tourism accounts for 6-9% of GDP

Question 32

Concerns about change in Bhutan

Answer 32

• There are concerns in tourism that the people migrating to Bhutan will want a different culture to the one they already have
• Heavy machinery that is used to cut new roads has ruined the peace of the quiet suburban villages
• Economy is already shifting mainly due to four massive hydropower projects. This can mean that many people are left behind.

Question 33

Extremism UK

Answer 33

• rise in popularity for far right in the UK
• e.g. National Front, EDL, Britain First
• protest/riots against immigration, Islam etc.
• want to maintain Britain’s cultural identity

Question 34

Describe the Mekong river conflict

Answer 34

• major river in 6 countries in South East Asia
• China, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam
• 60 million people depend on river
• 1995 treaty required governments to agree on dam proposals before going ahead with them
• dams now being built/proposed in Laos and China

Question 35

Benefits of dams in the Mekong river

Answer 35

• Laos to become ‘battery of Asia’ so benefits from employment, water, and HEP
• other countries benefit from electricity generated
• economic growth and industrial development in Laos, China, Thailand

Question 36

costs of dams in the Mekong river

Answer 36

• reduce river flow downstream
• affects livelihoods of fishermen downstream as not enough fish
• fewer nutrients brought by river for agriculture
• nearly all of Cambodia in Mekong basin and depends on its annual flooding for rice-growing
• 40% of Vietnam’s population relies on the fertile land in Basin

Question 37

What is the Bristol Pound?

Answer 37

• a local and community currency that was created to improve Bristol’s local economy.
• aims to support independent traders, in order to maintain diversity in business around the city.

Question 38

Social benefits of Bristol pound

Answer 38

• stronger bonds between local consumers and businesses
• increases social capital (the value of social networking in spreading trust and cooperation so that everyone benefits)

Question 39

Social costs of the Bristol pound

Answer 39

• very inclusive locally, but excludes outsiders.
• disincentive to build wider connections

Question 40

Environmental benefits of the Bristol pound

Answer 40

• reduces dependence on international trade and enhances self-sufficiency.
• decrease emissions through reduced transportation costs.

Question 41

Environmental costs of the Bristol pound

Answer 41

• Global trade allows for commodities to be produced in the most resource-efficient location.
• The costs of transport do not necessarily outweigh these gains

Question 42

Economic benefits of the Bristol pound

Answer 42

• multiplier effect.: Money keeps on circulating locally to benefit local independent businesses in the area
• If the money is spent at a supermarket chain instead, more than 80% will leave the area almost immediately

Question 43

Economic costs of the Bristol pound

Answer 43

• consumers can miss out on the price benefits of competition in national and regional markets.
• e.g. Aldi and Lidl often charge lower prices than local traders, as a result of their European scale and buying power

Question 44

Describe the Todmorden Transition Town

Answer 44

• town in South Pennines
• much of food on sale grown locally

Question 45

Describe the Incredible Edible Todmorden campaign:

Answer 45

• campaign aims to encourage consumers + growers to work together for long-term good of planet
• IET has created 40 public fruit + veg gardens
• they stage regular educational talks + events

Question 46

Rana Plaza factory collapse

Answer 46

• the collapse of the Rana Plaza factory in Bangladesh in 2013 impacted many garment TNCs.
• 1134 people were killed
• The TNCs relying on the garment factory lost profit and their production source
• the whole industry faced intense scrutiny over TNCs exploiting workers and providing unsafe working conditions