We've heard a lot about theories of International Development so far - the two main perspectives being either pro-development (i.e. modernisation theory and neoliberalism) or critical of development trajectories (i.e. dependency and world systems theory).
But what about beyond this dichotomy? Is there another way of characterising development, underdevelopment and global inequality?
In short, yes! This is where 'post-development' comes in.
- In this explanation, we'll be looking at postdevelopment theory.
- We'll start by exploring the meaning of postdevelopment theory, as well as examples of postdevelopment theory.
- Next, we'll consider post-development theory in application by looking at alternative models of development.
- We'll also be taking a look at the advantages and disadvantages of postdevelopment theory.
Postdevelopment theory meaning
Post-development argues that everything we've learnt so far about what indicates whether a country is 'developed' is, in essence, a form of 'Western', ethnocentric form of discourse.
- Discourse: a framework through which we see the world.
- Ethnocentric: "believing that the people, customs, and traditions of your own race or nationality are better than those of other races" (Cambridge Dictionary, 2022: online)1
Put more plainly: the majority of the indicators, measurements, classifications and theories of development, underdevelopment and global inequality we've seen so far....have all been created and constructed by experts in the 'West', who've tried to impose a particular model of development on the rest of the world.
This model refers to a capitalist-industrial model of development.
Just remember why Rostow developed modernisation theory in the first place!
Instead of arguing for, or against, a capitalist-industrial development model, post-development theory argues that there is no universal model of development to be followed: there is no grand meta-narrative.
Post-development theory argues that there is no universal model of development to be followed, and that current ideas around development have been constructed by experts in Western countries who've tried to impose their beliefs on the developing world (i.e. they are a form of Eurocentric discourse).
Consequently, out of post-development thinking, a focus on People-Centred Development was put forward. To understand this, however, let's first look at when post-development theory began, and who its main architect was.
Escobar: postdevelopment theory
Arturo Escobar is one of the leading post-development scholars who helped establish the thesis in the 1990s. For Escobar, post-development is essentially a critique of the current Eurocentric discourse and approach surrounding global development. As Escobar states in a 2018 online interview called "Farewell to Development" for The Great Transition Initiative:
Two key elements define the concept of 'post-development'. The first questions the central premises of development, [i.e.] economic growth and material progress… the second... is that African, Asian, and Latin American nations can and should put forward alternatives to development that incorporate non-Western concepts of what constitutes a thriving society." 2
In short, Escobar is saying that post-development is an argument not for 'development alternatives', such as the ideas of sustainable or equitable development, but alternatives to development completely - it is a complete paradigm shift (Escobar, 2018).
Developing countries should be able to make decisions for themselves based on their own choices; on their own discourses.
Economic growth is no longer tied to the idea of development. The idea of empowering the individual and pursuing consumerism no longer takes centre stage. Western-style Industrialisation in the pursuit of profit is not only problematic but wholly destructive.
If the aim of development is to create a higher standard of living and quality of life for the whole global population, then Escobar would have us ask ourselves: what really constitutes a greater quality of life? Are policies to improve the people's lives in the global south really best understood and contemplated by those in the West? Does growing global inequality not speak to the failures of the global development trajectory taken over the 20th century?
As additional food for thought - are the seemingly chronic and growing rates of mental health decline in advanced Western economies not a sign and symptom of a socio-economic system that no longer works? And if so, then is this really the kind of development end-point we want other countries to aspire to?
One to think about!
What is the relationship between post-development theory and discourse analysis?
Using the lens of discourse devised by Michel Foucault, post-development represents development as an inflexible and dominant discourse that actually constructs the problems that it claims to solve.
- Remember, discourse is a framework through which we see the world.
- A discursive framework is constituted through the ways in which knowledge, behaviours, events, subjects and ideas are portrayed and exchanged through communications.
- Discourse analysis is simply an analysis of such frameworks.
In many ways, post-development theory is a new form of discourse which challenges the current debate, knowledge and ideas that have dominated global development trajectories.
Development is seen as 'progress' and that progress is overwhelmingly calculated by economic growth. This economic growth is measured by indicators such as GDP or GNI per capita for example.
Post-development challenges this entire framework!
As for what makes a particular form of discourse pervasive, for Foucault, this comes down to historic embedded forms of power that legitimise some discourses (or views) and disregard others.
For instance, voting rights for women. In the UK women were not allowed to vote until 1918.
The discourse surrounding women's right to vote was framed around ideas that women were intellectually inferior to men and that women were 'too emotional' to vote 'rationally' and 'logically': the woman's role was not in politics but should be contained to matters of family.
Yet, as the suffragette movement gained momentum, more people started talking about the subject, opinions began to change, and the distribution of power experienced a shift. That is, the discourse changed from being completely patriarchal to a more inclusive system.
Heavy stuff! And don't worry, if you're an A-level student, this is beyond the scope of global development.
However, if you're at university, Michel Foucault's works and discourse analysis are fundamental to the contemporary academic landscape and I would implore you to research more!
I know what you're thinking though, what about an example of post-development in-action? It's easy to criticise existing frameworks, but what would post-development look like in reality?
Well, keep on reading!
Examples of post-development theory: Case studies of Bhutan and Latin American Buen Vivir
Both Bhutan and Buen Vivir provide examples of post-development thinking applied in practice. Let's look at each in turn.
Postdevelopment in Bhutan
Bhutan has decided to measure development in an entirely different way. Instead of measuring 'growth' in economic terms, i.e. by Gross Domestic Product (GDP), it has instead decided to use 'Gross National Happiness.'
As Marshall Sahlins (1997) indicates in a post-development argument: Western Aid agencies wrongly equate poverty with unhappiness - being poor and having few material possessions does not necessarily mean an inferior quality of life or perceived sense of happiness.
Global development narratives take no account of the fact that happiness also comes from strong communal and family bonds. As Reyes-García et al. (2021) discovered in a journal article titled Happy just because: A cross-cultural study on subjective wellbeing in three Indigenous societies, Indigenous people experience moderately high levels of happiness the majority of the time - "happiness just because". In fact, varying levels of happiness correlated not to poverty but health and social factors.
Postdevelopment in Buen Vivir, Latin America
Buen Vivir translates as 'good living'. It is a concept developed in the Andean region of Latin America that has been enlisted into the constitutions of Bolivia and Ecuador. In short, Buen Vivir promotes collective well-being and places Indigenous knowledge at the heart of development policies.
Buen Vivir sees the environment and human activity as inseparable - each is affected by the other. As Escobar (2018: online interview) states: "it confronts basic assumptions about progress, competition, consumerism, and materialism". In other words, it confronts the current Eurocentric discourse of development.
As a result, Buen Vivir - which is being practised by many local and remote communities in Bolivia and Ecuador - brings the idea of environmentalism into the equation of development. It highlights an alternative model of development: a people and planet-centred approach to development.
Fig. 2 - There are ideas of development which focus on human and environmental wellbeing, instead of capitalist growth and expansion.
Alternative models of development: post-development theory in application
The examples of Buen Vivir and Bhutan highlight different models of development. They are post-development ideas in practice. Instead of being 'top-down', they are 'bottom-up', which is sometimes described as 'grassroots development'.
Grassroots development puts forward the idea that people living in developing countries should have a say in how their countries should develop. That is, the process should be more ‘people centred’ so that the communities, whom the development projects would affect, are now the driving force in the process (see David C. Korten (1995)).
'Top-Down' Example: enforcing Structural Adjustment Programmes (SAPs) on developing countries.
'Bottom-Up' example: The Kuapa Kokoo project in Ghana - a cooperative of cocoa farmers that supply Fairtrade chocolate for the benefit of receiving higher and fairer prices for their goods.
People-centred development
People-Centred Development is characterised by a focus on:
Social justice
- For instance, including democratic decision-making (Ken Browne, 2017)
- The involvement of historically excluded groups (e.g., ethnic minorities and women)
Sustainability
The use of local knowledge
Locally sourced resources (such as communal farming - i.e. the idea of 'community participation)
Renewable technologies (e.g. SOLshare)
Funding
Advantages and disadvantages of postdevelopment theory
The advantages and criticisms of post-development theory can be assessed through the alternative development approaches it has helped spur. In particular, the development of the 'People-Centred Development' approach and the increasing focus on environmentalism within this. However, it is not without its critics.Let's explore both sides of the post-development debate...
Advantages of postdevelopment theory
It challenges the 'Eurocentric discourse' surrounding global development. It successfully brings the positions of the global south into the spotlight.
It has successfully spurred a variety of development approaches such as People-Centred Development; 'de-growth' and 'Transition Town' initiatives.
People-Centred Development projects can greatly improve the lives of local communities and do so sustainably and equitably - unlike the capitalist-industrial model of development that has been followed/enforced so far!
Disadvantages of postdevelopment theory
- Can mass, society-wide improvement come from just local, small-scale projects?
- Ray Keily (1999) argues that post-development unintentionally promotes neoliberal ideas by emphasising change in local communities. For example, locally decided, non-government funded projects imply a reduced role of the state, i.e. top-down development.
- Promotes cultural relativism? - i.e. all cultural beliefs and practices are just as valid as the other. This is seen as problematic and contradictory since there are cultural beliefs behind practices and structures such as FGM (female genital mutilation) and patriarchy (which are generally viewed as harmful) as well.
Responding to criticisms of postdevelopment theory
- Does it promote cultural relativism, or does it use a cultural relativism framework to understand cultural beliefs and practices in their specific context and create community-led development projects?
- At the heart of People-Centred Development is a focus on 'Social Justice'. This implies an increasing role and voice for women in the decision-making process. As Amartya Sen (1987) highlights: the greatest way to empower women is through education.
- Improving education for women is not tied to following a capitalist-industrial model of development.
- Does it promote neoliberal ideas, or does post-development simply say development projects should be community-led, small scale and not come with conditional funding? Why could people-centred development projects not be done en-masse?
Post Development Theory - Key Takeaways
- Postdevelopment theory argues that everything we've learnt so far about what indicates whether a country is 'developed' is, in essence, a form of 'Western', ethnocentric discourse.
- Instead of arguing for, or against, a capitalist-industrial development model, postdevelopment theory argues that there is no universal model of development to be followed - developing countries can and should put forward alternatives to development and what constitutes a thriving society.
- Postdevelopment theory models of development are 'bottom-up' rather than 'top-down'. In particular, this is shown with people-centred development.
- People-centred development is characterised by a focus on: (1) social justice, (2) sustainability and (3) small-scale, community-driven funding
- Criticisms of postdevelopment theory are that: (1) can mass, society-wide improvement come from just local, small-scale projects?, (2) post-development unintentionally promotes neoliberal ideas by emphasising change in local communities, and (3) it promotes a cultural relativism? - i.e. who are we, in the West, to therefore question cultural beliefs and practices such as FGM and a patriarchal structure?
References
- Ethnocentrism. Dictionary.cambridge.org. (2022). Retrieved 14 October 2022, from https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/ethnocentrism.
- Arturo Escobar, "Farewell to Development," interview by Allen White, Great Transition Initiative (February 2018), http://greattransition.org/publication/farewell-to-development.
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