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 Asia's GDP growth and growing incomes will lead to regional
prosperity
While GDP is an important scale to measure an economy's development, most people
use it as a description of regional prosperity. This essay will show that Asia's GDP growth
and rising incomes will not lead to the region's prosperity. There will be numerous arguments
and supporting data offered to prove this. First of all, it is undeniable that the higher GDP,
the wealthier nations can be, which will result in high-quality infrastructure and services. By
contrast, regional citizens can not feel free and happy to enjoy their lives due to the pressure
of overworking. Moreover, the wealth gap and the increase in GDP and incomes will go in a
parallel way. Another argument is that the intention of products and services may cause the
depletion of natural resources. Last but not least, environmental pollution is a seriously
concerning issue when GDP significantly goes up.

Studies show that the total monetary or market worth of all the finished goods and
services produced within a nation's boundaries during a certain period is known as the gross
domestic product (GDP). It serves as a thorough assessment of a particular country's
economic health as a broad indicator of entire domestic production. Furthermore, according
to studies, there are nine "pillars" that make up a nation's prosperity: the economy, the
business climate, government, personal freedom, social capital, safety and security,
education, health, and the environment.

Firstly, high GDP means that an economy significantly develops, which directly
brings wealth to the country. In other words, it has a newly-fitted infrastructure, modern
technology, and qualified services of health and education. South Korea, a developed
country, is a clear example of this statement. Between 1988 and 2019, real GDP growth in
Korea was 5.45% yearly on average as a result of government actions. The road network in
South Korea is large and well-maintained. It reported 64,808 kilometers (40,272 miles) of
paved roads in 1998, along with 22,182 kilometers (13,784 miles) of unpaved roads,
including 1,996 kilometers (1,240 miles) of expressways. The state plans to replace gas and
oil pipelines between 2019 and 2023 for a total of 490.8 billion KRW, more than four times
the budget for the previous five years. To advance R&D, infrastructure, and economic
growth, the South Korean government intended to invest USD 3.9 billion of its 2020 budget
in technologies like artificial intelligence (AI).

On the other hand, people have to work too hard to create a high GDP, and they get
the stress of overworking, and local residents are unable to feel free and happy to enjoy their
life. For example, Japan is a nation with a high GDP which accounts for $4,937.42B (2021),
$5,040.11B (2020), and $5,123.32 (2019). Besides that, workplace stress is to blame for up
to 60% of suicides. Japanese individuals may be required to work up to 100 hours per month,
which can lead to extreme exhaustion and stress at the workplace and even suicide. They are
referred to as "Karoshi". Suicides in Japan are declining as a result of a shift in stressors
brought about by the Covid-19 lockdown.
 Moreover, the increases in GDP will lead to higher incomes, but the inequality gap
will occur. In other words, higher GDP can not improve poverty, the rich become richer and
the poor stay sustainably. When compared with other countries in Asia, India's GDP is vitally
high at $3.18T (2021), 2.67T (2020), and 2.83T (2019). In particular, according to Oxfam
statistics, 77% of India's GDP belongs to the richest 10% of the population, and 73% of the
wealth created in 2017 was owned by 1% of the country's wealthiest individuals, leaving 67
million Indians, who make up the poorest half of the population, with just a 1% increase in
wealth in the same year.

Furthermore, the increase in GDP can not lack the consumption of natural resources
which are being depleted. According to the analysis, human activity is primarily to blame for
the region's declining biodiversity. There has been extensive damage as a result of
deforestation for plantations and agricultural land as well as the destruction of coral reefs for
fisheries. The 16th-largest economy in the world is that of Indonesia. Oil, gas, coal, and
crude palm oil (CPO), which account for around 50% of Indonesia's exports, are among the
natural resources and commodities that have greatly bolstered the country. However, damage
from oil subsidies has already been done. Since 2004, Indonesia has turned into a net
importer of both refined goods and crude oil. The government spent Rp306.5 trillion
(US$31.5 billion) on oil subsidies in 2012, a significant increase from Rp139.9 trillion
(US$14.4 billion) in 2010.

Last but not least, one of the most important statements is environmental pollution.
50% of rivers in Asia are affected by biological pollution, largely due to the discharge of
untreated sewage, waste, and domestic waste into the river. WHO estimates that air pollution
causes 7 million fatalities annually, with 4 million of those deaths occurring in Asia-Pacific.
They not only claim the lives of millions of people, but they also result in annual economic
damages of up to $5 trillion. Infamously bad air quality is a problem in China, which is
currently the world's top producer of greenhouse gases. Two more environmental issues that
its carbon-intensive enterprises are contributing to are water scarcity and soil contamination.
The ecosystem in China is severely affected by water contamination. Around 70% of the
nation's rivers and lakes are unfit for human use because up to 90% of the nation's
groundwater is contaminated by hazardous industrial and human waste disposal sites,
agricultural fertilizers, and human waste disposal.

In conclusion, this essay could clearly shows that Asia's GDP growth and rising wages
won't lead to the region's prosperity. There is the fact that the wealthier a country is, the
better its infrastructure and services will be, and this is correlated with higher GDP.
Nevertheless, there are four counterarguments to prove the main statement. Firstly, people
must work too hard to generate a high GDP, which causes stress and prevents them from
feeling free and content to enjoy their lives. Secondly, although higher incomes will result
from GDP growth, inequality will still exist. Moreover, natural resources may be depleted as
a result of the intentions of products
and services. Finally, economic growth is always accompanied by heavy environmental
pollution. Therefore, prosperity in a country can not be judged by high GDP while it depends
on many complements and human life is the key point.