ASSIGNMENT (ESSAY) 1. Written assignment takes into consideration written communication skills in economic issues discussed in the topic, that involves expressing yourself in writing clearly, credit...

Introduction
The concept of economic development is complex and multi- dimensional. It is true that
globalization has significant contribution in achieving economic growth for many developing
countries like India, China, and Singapore. But globalization is an uneven process where all the
nations do not enjoy the positive benefits evenly. Despite the positive view most of economist
and academic researchers hold about globalization, sufficient empirical evidence also suggests
the adverse impact of globalization experienced by the less developed economies. Many less
developed countries in Sub Saharan and Latin America are experiencing significant economic
challenges.
With the help of various theories of development and the empirical evidence, this paper
provides a critical review of the major obstacles currently experiencing by the less developed
nations in Africa, Latin America and Asia. The paper also recommends some policy implications
that would help in promoting the economic growth of the developing economies
Population growth: major cause of underdevelopment
As the global population booms, there is a growing concern about the mismatch between the
increasing needs of human and what the planet can provide. The new projection of escalating
population becomes a huge threat across the globe. In a famous 1798 essay, Malthus proposed
that the world population grows at a higher rate than our ability to grow food. As a result, we
would starve eventually. He asserted that while the population is growing at a geometric
progression, foods are growing only at an arithmetic progression so the food production will not
able to keep the pace in the days ahead. Malthus envisioned mass starvation did not happen till
today even the global population touches to 800 million approximately. This is primarily due to
the advancement of agricultural technology and high quality chemical fertilizers used for
harvesting. But still the researchers are worried about the issue and believe that Malthus
prediction may come true eventually (Dimick, 2014)
Thus rapid population growth is associated with huge negative economic consequences and thus
considered as a real concern for developing countries. Empirical evidence confirms that rapid
population growth intensifies the social, economic and psychological problems associated with
underdevelopment. Population growth is believed to retard any improvements in standard of
living for the present generation and also transmit the poverty to the future generation in low
income families. Actually low income families induce to have more children due to lack of
family planning education and old age security. They also in favor of larger families because of
cheap source of labor but it leads to another vicious circle- large families mean higher
dependency burden, lower savings, less investment and greater poverty. So population growth is
recognized as both cause and consequence of underdevelopment. (Smith, 2006)
Population growth and its vital impact on economic development: A case for Bangladesh
Rapid population growth is a huge threat to the developing countries – Thomas Malthus also
warned about the negative consequence of overpopulation. Bangladesh, a small Asian country
can be referred to as a prominent example of how higher population growth deters economic
development. Higher population growth is at the heart of Bangladesh’s social economic and
political problems. Over the year 1950-2012 Bangladesh’s population has increased by 430
percent. Due to such population growth, Bangladesh has one of the highest dependency ratios.
An empirical study on Bangladesh published on International Journal of Economics has
examined its impact on economic development. Shahjahan Ali, Khandaker Jahangir Alam, in
their research study, has conducted a multivariate analysis with 1981-2014 data that established a
negative relation between the population growth and economic performance of Bangladesh.
Higher population growth contributes to lower investment rate and lower savings rate – as a
result Bangladesh still remains far away from developmental stage. (Shahjahan Ali, Volume 3,
Issue 3, June 2015,)
Poor Growth in Africa:
In the 1960s, the economic growth for African countries was rapid and the future...