The Course of Political Development in Uganda and its Effect on Economic Development

The country known as Uganda was once a British colony just like the majority of its neighbors in East Africa. It was initially intruded into by the Arab traders led by Speke and the British explorers led by Stanley in 1862 and 1875 respectively. They both paid homage to Mutesa who was the King (kabaka) of the Buganda. Uganda remained predominantly under the colony of the British until 1962 when they were granted internal self government by Britain (History World, 2011).

9. Review Klein, Chapters 2 and 3. She explains the influence of US economists, especially Milton Friedman, in designing development strategies, and of the US in installing or supporting governments that would carry them out in several countries that had been pursuing a ‘middle’ development path of ‘regulated’ capitalism in which the state played a large role in supporting social welfare and the development of local businesses. You can expect test questions on this material, including the role of the US in ‘regime change’ in these countries, the role of US-trained economists afterward, and the path that these countries were supposed to pursue.

The lifeblood of these regimes is the dissatisfied citizens, the unimpressed masses who desire revolution and freedom from poverty, which is propogated to have risen out of Capitalist involvement in the Americas. Capitalist economies, on the other hand, believe that it has nothing to do with their involvement and instead sees these stages of development as natural, something that every economy will go through, if they have not already. Despite the appeal, it is untrue to say that every developed nation has gone through stages of development that todays underdeveloped nations are going through. As Andre Gunder Frank puts it “the now developed countries were never underdeveloped, though they may have been undeveloped” (104). This goes to show that the playing field was not even for all, and that today's developing nations had a headstart in developing.

Economic growth, put simply, is “an increase in the amount of goods and services produced per head of the population over a period of time”; development is inextricably linked with this economic growth. By utilising theories of economic growth and development we can see how the Chinese and Sub-Saharan African economies have emerged, but, more notably, we can use these to look at patterns from past and present to show their experience and the implications of this growth for the future.

Economic development can be defined generally as involving an improvement in economic welfare, measured using a variety of indices, such as the Human Development Index (HDI). A developing country is described as a nation with a lower standard of living, underdeveloped industrial base, and a low HDI relative to other countries. There are several factors which may have the effect of limiting economic development in such countries. Factors such as these include: primary product dependency, the savings gap and political instability.

This essay seeks to critically analyze the statement that “Economic liberalism is a prerequisite for economic development in development economies.” This paper will begin by outlining the concept of economic liberalization and its effect on the development agenda for Zambia. An analysis of these experiences is then made in order to derive lessons regarding the linkage between economic liberalization and economic development. It will then draw the pros and cons; positives and negatives effects of economic liberalism in the Zambian economy and will finally conclude by establishing the way forward for developing

In 1985, a northern Acholi General Tito Okello overthrew Milton Obote, hen second-term president and ethnic Langi,in a fight between Acholi and Langi soldiers in Kampala, central Uganda. (S3 371) This again characterizes the power struggle and conflict between two opposite actors once again over power. After the fight, the Acholi retreated and regrouped in the north. After taking Kampala, Ugandans and Acholi's established Tito Okello as the new President. Okello then was pressured by the people into entering negotiations with southern rebel groups, namely the National Resistance Army (NRA) led by UPM leader Yoweri Museveni. After a failed cease-fire and attempt to establish control over his troops, Milton Obote was overthrown in early 1986 by Yoweri Museveni. (S3 371) Museveni's army, the National Resistance Army (NRA) immediately began conducting revenge attacks and massacres against the Acholi's, causing many to flee to Sudan. (S1 142) The attacks from Museveni, a southern Ugandan, in mid-1986, forced many northern Ugandans to have heightened concern that Museveni's forces would attempt possible retaliation against Obote during a time when an insurgency against Museveni's army began in some of the traditional Acholi areas of northern Uganda. The retaliation against Obote was believed to be against his brutality during his reign. (S2)

Amartya Sen defines economic development in terms of personal freedom, freedom to choose from a range of options. While economic growth may lead to an increase in the purchasing power of people, if the country has a repressed economy, there is lack of choice and hence personal freedom in restricted. Hence once again growth has taken place without any development. While economic growth may result in an improvement in the standard of living of a relatively small proportion of the population whilst the majority of the population remains poor. It is how the economic growth is distributed amongst the population that determines the level of development.

Most of the developing countries are mired deeply in economical obstacles, which prevent them from development significantly. In order to overcome those embarrassments world’s society struggles to find the efficient solution for poor countries’ economies. Historically, developed countries undertook policy of giving aid to their colonies, afterwards by the end of The Second World War the United States and United Nations embarked the global sponsorship to the developing countries and countries of the Third World due to humanitarian considerations. Since then many other countries have joined in the effort to provide financial aid to lesser developed or poverty ridden countries. But none of those countries that received an aid had experienced a prosperity phase and rapid economic growth.

Politics play a crucial role in the success of any economy. The field of political economy is, thus, crucial in demonstrating the manner politics, law and institutions alter the course a country’s economic development. Politics is an integral part of an economy since it is used to allocate scarce resources within a state. Ideally, political economy refers to a mixture of sociology, politics, economics, history and philosophy, which integrates adequate evidence to examine how individuals exist within societies. Although the partnership between China and Angola dates back to 1960s and 1970s, over the recent past, Africa, particularly Angola, has increasingly become an attractive site for Chinese investments. This report reveals that China has been at the forefront in spearheading investments and economic development of Angola, particularly on its agricultural and oil sectors.

To a large extent, Tanzania did not achieve real independence. Through evaluating the primary pillars of a country (social, political and economic) and its growth in a twenty-year period it is evident that, despite, a change in governance Tanzania did not achieve real independence as colonial powers continued to control the country’s economy, colonial ideologies permeated through political structures, socially, the nation’s growth and longevity was inhibited as a result of decades of racial oppression and after independence Tanzania still relied on foreign investment and gifts.

The questions are raised as what and how the wealth is distributed or allocated among societies. Countries with similar average incomes can differ substantially when it comes to people’s quality of life such as social justice, access to education and health care, job opportunities, availability of clean air and safe drinking water, the threat of crime, freedom of speech, life expectancy, birth-death control, identity, culture, conservation, equal opportunities, environmental change. Development is important as it covers a wide range process involving cultural, economic, environmental, political, social and technological change of a country. Regarding goals and means of development, recent United Nations documents emphasize on human development measured by life expectancy, adult literacy, access to all three levels of education as well as people‘s average income which is a necessary condition of their freedom of choice. In other words, human development incorporates all aspects of individuals’ well -being from their health status to their economic and political freedom. The Human Development Report 1996 of UNDP focuses on development as the end and economic growth a

Lack of development in countries in the so-called `Third World' has many political and economical reasons. Historians explain the inadequacy of developing countries with the early imperialism and the resulting colonization of the South. Exploitation of mineral resources, deforestation, slavery, and the adaptation of foreign policies shaped the picture of today's suffering and struggling civilizations and natural rich continents. The omission of concessions and equal negotiations between dependency and supremacy give rise to the contrast of enormous resources and immense poverty in developing countries is. In the last years the outcry of justice and the emancipation of the Third World became louder throughout developing and industrialized

Kenya and Uganda are neighbours. They are all within East Africa together with Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan. Even though they are within the same region; their development status in agriculture, industrialization, democracy, health, and education economies differ greatly.

In the inaugural forum, economic development was the primary focus with respect to globalization, macroeconomic regulation of the economy and the global competitiveness of Eurasian countries. In the subsequent forums, the themes of discussion included: Eurasian economic security in the system of global risk; crisis lessons and post-crisis model of economic development under conditions of globalization; developing the global economy through the trends of the economy with business and investment, finance and stable social development; the implementation of innovation and the attraction of investment through food security, tourism development and alternative energy.