Globalization, Civil Society and Global Poverty - Paper Example

Harvey, D., 1995. Globalization in question. Rethinking marxism, 8(4), pp.1-17.

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Banerjee, S.B. and Linstead, S., 2001. Globalization, multiculturalism and other fictions: colonialism for the new millennium?. Organization, 8(4), pp.683-722.

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Sjursen, K. 2000. Globalization. Bronx, N.Y.: H.W. Wilson Co.

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2. Can you discuss the relationship between State, Civil Society, and International Organizations in Global Development Policies?

Typically, state organizations will be responsible for development policies at a national level while international organizations will be responsible for coordinating development policies of different states in order to come up with one global development agenda. Civil society can be either local or international and their main work is to ensure that governments comply with development agendas and that these policies are beneficial to everyone (Gabay, 2012).

State organizations will usually include the government and its various branches, for developing and implementing development policies. Typically, state organizations will work to implement the development agenda of the countrys government. For instance, a state organization on trade will work to improve trade relationships between different companies within the country. However, in the age of globalization, different countries have increasingly become more dependent on each other in order to achieve development. For instance, a country will concentrate its production on goods that it has a competitive advantage over its rivals. It will then produce a surplus of these goods for export, through which the country will earn revenue. Different countries will have different laws and regulations, which can mean trade, can be complex.

On the other hand, International organizations step in to bridge these differences. International organizations such as the United Nations and the world trade organization bring together the agendas of different countries in order to make trade easier. This is usually achieved by working out a way in which all the partner countries will benefit. An excellent example is the Millennium Development Goals adopted by the United Nations. The main reason behind the goals is the reduction of poverty and hunger, universal education and gender equality (Jackson, 2007). These international organizations will usually be funded by developed countries and they will usually identify development goals for less developed countries and provide them with funds to enable them to achieve their development agendas. The link between the international organizations and state organizations in that they work in partnership by mobilizing both human and financial resources in order to accomplish their set goals.

Civil organizations have been established so that they can ensure that the agreements made on a global scale are balanced and provide equal opportunity for development and that poorer countries are not shortchanged. Civil organizations also work to identify problems within the society and seek funds from the international organizations. According to Pieterse (1998), organizations such as NGOs play a critical role in development success on the ground. Similarly, Chandhoke, Glasius, Kaldor, and Anheier (2002) point out that civil organizations and NGOs have been on the forefront of highlighting issues of global concern. NGOs help build schools, clinics, water wells, and provide electricity in an effort to stimulate economic growth (Dunlap and Fairhead, 2014).

In conclusion, because of globalization, it is important for different countries to collaborate in ensuring that development policies are achieved. State organizations, international organizations and civil society will therefore continue to play an important role in ensuring that development agendas and policies are set correctly and achieved.

Word count: 501

Reference

Gabay, C., 2012. Civil society and global poverty: hegemony, inclusivity, legitimacy (Vol. 26). Routledge.

Pieterse, J.N., 1998. My paradigm or yours? Alternative development, postdevelopment, reflexive development. Development and change, 29(2), pp.343-373.

Jackson, P., 2007. A prehistory of the Millennium Development Goals: four decades of struggle for development in the United Nations. UN Chronicle, 12, p.2007.

Chandhoke, N., Glasius, M., Kaldor, M. and Anheier, H., 2002. The limits of global civil society (pp. 35-54). na.

Mishra, U. (2004). Millennium development goals: whose goals and for whom?. BMJ, 329(7468), pp.742-742.

Moss, T. (2010). What Next for the Millennium Development Goals?. Global Policy, 1(2), pp.218-220.

3. The majority of global population lives under poverty, how can we understand poverty under the conditions of modern advanced capitalism where global production is so increased in comparison to previous historical stages?

According to current figures, majority of the worlds population lives in poverty. 2015 figures indicated that the worlds wealthiest one percent held as much wealth as the poorest 90%. This means that majority of the worlds wealth is concentrated in the hands of only a few (Chandy, and Gertz, 2011). Despite the current economic climate where production is at its highest in history, many people still live in poverty. Green (2005) points out that about one fifth of the global population lives on less than a dollar a day. Hstorically, this is a problem that occurred due to the incompetency and corrupt leaders that were chosen to lead people in the past.

There are numerous reasons why many people still live in poverty despite global economic production being at its highest in history. The first among these is increased population. The current population of the world is also the highest in history. The current global population is estimated to be around seven billion people, and is projected to grow to figures of over ten billion in the next few decades. There has never been a time in history where there have been these many people in the world. Many people share the benefits and this means that many people still do not benefit leading to poverty. This is because of the strong association between poverty and social inequalities (Farmer, 2004). An example of this is the presence of informal settlements in many cities across the globe (Davis, 2011). Cities will only have the resources to support a specific number of people yet more people get attracted to the cities with the hope of getting a share. More people sharing same resources results from the fact that resources mainly limit economic growth (Sullivan, 2009).

The top-down nature of globalization has also contributed greatly to global poverty. The top down process means that those countries that already have resources are responsible for providing them for the development of other less developed countries. In many cases, the developed nations will provide assistance only on instances where they also stand to benefit resulting in the exploitation of less developed countries by their more developed counterparts. The population in the less developed countries therefore continues to suffer from poverty. Mosse (2007) notes that this is a direct result of marginalization and marginalized zones resulting from global inequality. Jackson (1996) also suggests a link between gender and poverty due to marginalization of women. According to the article, women are more likely to experience poverty in patriarchal societies since men tend to own most of the properties. This view is as supported by Kabeer (2005) who states that gender inequality intensifies poverty. Similarly, Dalakoglou (2013) also examines the relationship between poverty and marginalization of migrants in Greece. Poor leadership in the past are some of the causes of top-down nature of globalization.

All these create a vicious cycle of poverty where the poorer countries have to depend on aid from the richer countries with most of the benefits being felt by the richer nations. As this process continues, more people are caught up resulting in a majority of the worlds population ending up in...