Lesson 6:

Global Divides: The North and The

South (focus on Latin America)

 Know
 Attributes of the Global North and the Global South
 Development experiences of Latin American countries

 Do
 Short Essay about the future of Latin American and Philippine
Nations, Institutions and Communications under Globalization
 Infographic promoting awareness on the effects of globalization,
highlighting the challenges and opportunities it poses to the
Philippines as part of the Global South.

 Feel
 Reflect critically on the significance of understanding the global
divides: the north and the south.
 Interpret the development experiences of the Philippines as part of
the Global South.
 LESSON 6: GLOBAL DIVIDES

Lesson 6. Global Divides: The North and The

South (focus on Latin America)

Learning Outcomes
At the end of the lesson, you should be able to:
Define the term “Global South.”
Differentiate the Global South from the Third World.
Analyze how a new conception of global relations emerged from the
experiences of Latin American Countries.

Assigned Reading Materials

This is an asynchronous task. It is expected that the students
have read the following materials before proceeding with the rest
of the module.

 Chapter 12 of textbook: “Locating the Global South” by Lisandro E.

Claudio
 Connell, Raewyn. 2007. Dependency, Autonomy and Culture. In
Southern Theory: The Global Dynamics of Knowledge in Social
Science. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press, pp 139-163.
 LESSON 6: GLOBAL DIVIDES

Introduction
Now that you have learned about the United Nations and the
Contemporary Global Governance, in this lesson you are going to learn
the concept of “global divides,” the definition of “Global South,” the
difference between the ‘Global South’ and the ‘Third World’, and how a
new conception of global relations emerged from the experiences of Latin
American Countries.

GLOBAL DIVIDES: The North and the South, First

World and Third World

Based on the grand development narratives, the term Global North

and Global South are commonly used to refer to the two halves of the
current global system.

The Global North refers to developed countries such as the United

States, Canada, Europe, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Australia, and
New Zealand; while the Global South refers to Africa, Latin America and
developing countries of Asia. Hence, economically, the Global North
refers to the rich and developed parts of the world, while the Global
South covers the poor and developing half of it. Most countries of the
Global North have a GDP per capita that is above the world’s GDP per
capita, while most nations of the Global South have a GDP per capita
below the world’s GDP per capita.1

Politically, the Global North is also more powerful as an entity if its

collective strength at the UN Security Council will be taken into
consideration – as it holds the said council’s three out of five permanent
seats. Culturally, diversity reigns in both the Global North and the
Global South, though the rapid spread of technology and the increasing

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accessibility to mainstream popular media have done much to multiply

and strengthen cultural linkages within the context of a multilingual and
multicultural world.2

The terms Global North and the Global South, and First World
and Third World are used interchangeably in common conversation.
Though these two sets of concepts are related, they are actually different.

The labels First World, Second World, and Third World came into
popular use during the Cold War between the capitalist camp led by the
US, UK, and their allies; and the socialist side led by the Soviet Union
and its allies.

The capitalist camp was dubbed as the First World, while the
socialist side was labeled the Second World. The other countries of the
world comprising much of Asia, Africa and Latin America were called the
Third World. These countries are mostly former colonies of Western
powers, but nevertheless reluctant to be overtly included in either camp.

Currently, many countries labeled as part of the First and Second

Worlds during the Cold War are not part of the Global North while most
of the Third World countries still belong to the Global South. The use of
these labels has political significance to:

“those engaged in social and political action against global inequality.

Drawing lines between the global south and the global north … the first
and the Third World, has a powerful political function. It allows critics
and activists to make distinctions between beneficiaries of uneven system
of political power. Contemporary critics of neo-liberal globalization use
the global south as a banner to rally countries victimized by the violent
economic “cures” of institutions like the IMF.”3

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Whatever labels are used, the existence of considerable gaps between

the developing countries and the developed countries is undeniable.

Authors William R. Thompson and Rafael Reuveny acknowledged

that despite the promises of a so-called borderless world under
globalization, significant gaps between the Global North and the Global
South are still observable especially on technological diffusion or the
spread of technological innovation through research and development
and debts. They opined that “radical technological diffusion is largely
restricted to the North. Each subsequent iteration of radical economic
change thereby further contributes to widening the gap between the
North and South.4 In other words, present and future innovations that
improve the production and promote efficiency do little to change the
status quo where the Global South is condemned to economic
dependency because the Global North still monopolizes such
technological advances which give the latter enormous advantage over
the former.

Thompson and Reuveny further argued that “Southern states are

highly vulnerable to external market fluctuations. If states specialize in
providing raw materials for Northern consumption and the
demand/prices for these commodities fluctuate, it stands to reason that
Southern economic prospects are held hostage to variable extents by
processes over which their own economies have little control … Southern
economies periodically and repetitively undergo debt crises that reflect a
number of things but certainly encompass structured relations between
North and South. When Northern economies falter, Southern economies
suffer even more. Historically, they have experienced reduced trade
demand, restricted investment capital and gunboat diplomacy sometimes
leading to outright military occupation by Northern states … Southern

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economic growth prospects, as a consequence, are handicapped by this

vulnerability and cyclical roadblocks to further development.”5

Moreover, economist Ha-Joon Chang’s historical study of capitalist

globalization remarks that development process is a difficult path to take
for the developing countries, considering that developed countries have
been “kicking away the ladder” which they have used to climb to the top,
to prevent developing countries from adopting protectionist economic
policies aimed at shielding local industries from stiff foreign competition
under foreign trade.6

LATIN AMERICA AND THE PHILIPPINES UNDER

GLOBALIZATION

Partly because of their inability to catch up with the Global North’s

twin policies of innovation and industrialization, the Philippines and
most Latin American countries, and other regions formerly colonized by
Western powers are still relatively poorer than the countries that
colonized them. Hence, these countries are still labeled as Third World
nations. Wealth gaps between the poorest and the richest are also
observable in these regions.7

The Philippines is comparable with Latin America for the latter is a

region that still works as a menial. It continues to exist at the service of
other’s needs, as a source and reserve of oil and iron, of copper and meat,
of fruit and coffee, the raw materials and goods destined for rich
countries which profit more from consuming them than Latin America
does from producing them … Latin America is the region of open
veins. Everything, from the discovery until our times, has always been
transmuted into European – or later United States – capital, and as such
has accumulated in distant centers of power… This country’s defeat was
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always implicit in the victory of others; its wealth has always generated its
poverty by nourishing the prosperity of others – the empires and their
native overseers.8

This development experience and reality of Latin American

countries reflect the notion of economic dependency. Theotonio Dos
Santos, one of Dependency Theory’s eminent scholars, defined
dependency as a “situation in which the economy of certain countries is
conditioned by the development and expansion of another economy to which the
former is subjected, categorized as colonial dependency or financial-
industrial dependency.” He noted that aside from influencing the
international affairs of the subordinated country, dependency also covers
“their internal structures: the orientation of production, the forms of
capital accumulation, the reproduction of the economy, and, simultaneously, their
social and political structure.”9 Simply put, dependency theory scholars
assert that industrialized countries exploit poor countries
through economic and political neocolonialism which perpetuate the
latter’s pre-industrial or semi-industrial status – majority of which are
former colonies of developed countries.

In a speech at a plenary session of UNCTAD, Ernesto “Che”

Guevara summarized Dependency Theory’s critique of the global status
quo10:

“the inflow of the capital from the developed countries is the

prerequisite for the establishment of economic dependence. This inflow
takes various forms: loans granted on onerous terms; investment that
place a given country in the power of the investors; almost total
technological subordination of the dependent country to the developed
country; control of country’s foreign trade by the international big

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monopolies; and in extreme cases, the use of force as an economic

weapon in support of other forms of exploitation.”

Factors that worsen developing countries’ dependency on the developed countries

include11:

1. Urban development, together with inadequate increase in agricultural

production of foodstuffs, which make necessary increasing imports of
basic food products.

2. Increase in administrative expenditure out of proportion with the

possibilities of the local economy.

3. Change in the structures of income distribution, with the

“Europeanization” of the way of life and consumer habits of the
privileged strata (demonstration effects).

4. Inadequate industrial development and disequilibrium in the industrial

structures which necessitate imports of production goods and
intermediate goods. The combined working of these forces renders the
underdeveloped countries dependent on external aid, which tends to
become permanent.

Because of these realities, the Philippines remains poor or

underdeveloped. Its imports remain high while the government fails to
strengthen the domestic market through industrialization, especially when
remittances from citizens working overseas provide enough dollars to help
keep the national economy afloat.12 Capital, debt, machinery or
technology, and high value products comprise the bulk of Philippine

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imports; while workers/professionals, raw materials, semi-manufactures

goods, and profits are among the Philippines’ exports.

Activity No. 1 13

1. This is an asynchronous task. You have been chosen to

represent the university in a national essay writing contest
organized by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), with the
theme “The Future of Latin American and Philippine Nations,
Institutions and Communications under Globalization.” You
are advised to write coherently and concisely, and to cite
pertinent reference materials.

2. Use the following questions to guide you in substantiating your

essay:
(a) How can the characteristics, nature, or experiences of Latin
American nations and the Philippines, as well as institutions and
communities help them navigate through or yield under
globalization?

(b)Considering the nature of prevailing agreements and treaties

across nations and regions; existing literature; and data, describe
the trajectory of the economy, politics, and culture of Latin
American countries and the Philippines. Likewise, characterize
their institutions and communities under globalization.

3. Submit your output [document file] in the assigned submission

bin.
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Activity No. 2 14

1. This is an asynchronous task. Prepare an infographic promoting

awareness on the effects of globalization, highlighting the
challenges and opportunities it poses to the Philippines as part
of the Global South.

2. Ensure clarity, effective use of colors, and plain language to

make it appealing to common folk and the youth.

3. Submit your output in the designated submission bin.

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