Differences Within Countries
Geography: Edexcel A Level, topic 10.3.4
The Effect of Gender and Ethnicity on Development
There are significant variations in human rights within countries, which are reflected in different levels of social development.
Gender
- At a global level, countries may be differentiated on the basis of the Gender Inequality Index.
- Gender inequality does not vary much within countries.
- This is because gender equality is usually determined by either government policy or law.
- The recent gender inequality pay issue at the BBC suggests that gender discrimination persists in the UK.
Ethnicity
- In many post-colonial countries, some ethnic groups found they had fewer rights than the dominant group.
- Although various forms of government were set up in the colonies, indigenous people were largely excluded from the administrations.
Post-colonial independence
- Independence from colonial rule often led to chaos, with different ethnic groups vying for political control, with much violence.
- The situation was made worse by the fact that colonial borders cut across traditional ethnic boundaries.
- One of the worst examples was in Rwanda in the 1990s where there was extreme violence ending in genocide between the majority Hutu and minority Tutsi tribal peoples.
Access to Health and Education as a Human Right
There is a broad correlation between human rights and access to health and education. Education should lead to a greater respect for other human rights.
Indigenous Americans
- The indigenous populations of the Americas e.g. the First Nations of Canada, highlight significant internal differences in access to health and education.
- They represent a rich diversity of culture, religion, tradition and language, and they are often stewards of the Earth’s biologically-rich resources.
Threats to indigenous Americans
- Many people are under threat from mining, oil extraction, dam and road building and other agro-industrial projects.
- They have been driven from their homelands, and are poorer, less educated and in generally worse health.
- They have very high rates of suicide.
Test yourself on Differences Within Countries
In the governments of post-colonial countries, who were often excluded?
Which of the following are true for many post-colonial countries?
Which population in America have the highest suicide rate?