ABSTRACT
This short book is designed to stimulate critical thought and discussion about development and, in particular, about development in what is conventionally termed the developing world. The need for such thought and discussion has never been greater. Travelling and learning about faraway and exotic places has long been an attractive occupation, and more and more people are now able to travel and stay in the world’s poorest countries. Concern for the poor, equity and social justice and for the environment in which the poor of the world live has motivated and continues to motivate large numbers of people. But the rapidly increasing globalisation of economic, social and political life now demands a wider and deeper understanding of and perspective on the issues that face the world’s poor. There is a need for everyone to challenge many of the views, ideas and opinions which too often constitute the received wisdom or thinking about the developing world today. Moreover, the former Soviet Union, together with much of Eastern Europe, and China, are now usually counted as developing economies, and their central role in international affairs and security demands much greater knowledge and understanding in advanced countries, more particularly in the most powerful economies of the United States, Western Europe and Japan.
