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The Pros And Disadvantages Of Globalization In Africa

Decent Essays

According to Michael Todaro(2014), globalization refers to the increased openness of countries to international trade, financial flows, and foreign direct investment(FDI). Globalization is a concept that affects and would continue to affect all aspects of the world economy both domestically and internationally. According to Robert Hiplin, growth of international trade, massie financial flows, and the activities of multinational corporations (MNC’s) are tying national economies more tightly to one another, thus making globalization feature of the world economy. But is globalization a ‘PANACEA’ or a ‘PERFIDY’ to the economic development of the global south?. Brittan(1998) for instance define globalization as “a whirlwind of relentless and disruptive change which leaves governments helpless and leaves a trail of economic, social, cultural and environmental problems …show more content…

According to the UN (2000), the WTO is a “venerable nightmare for certain sectors of humanity notably developing countries….). Throughout the past few decades, Africa has served as an dispensable source of resources and cheap labour but has not really benefitted from such contribution. The WTO in its current state is e agency representing northern interests. The WTO claims that it seeks to protect the poorer states from the oligarchic rule of stronger states by providing uniform rules and dispute settlement mechanisms for global trade. In reality however, there are vast imbalances in bargaining and negotiating capacities as many global north countries are stronger both economically and politically. The IMF for instance demands African countries to pay 20%-25% of their export earnings towards debt service. More so many terrorist attacks have been facilitated by globalization (Arms Trade) which has led to global economic slowdown, leading to weaker exports and lower commodity prices for many developing

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