It is the
international-structuralist model which highlighted the
concept
of dual societies. This means that there exist rich nations and poor nations at
world level; and a few rich accompanied with a majority of poor people in the
developing countries. Thus, dualism is a concept which represents the existence
and persistence of increasing divergences between rich and poor both at world
level and at country levels.
Components/Elements
of Dualism:
Prof. Hans Singer presents the
four components of dualisms:
(i) The different sots of conditions amongst which some are superiors while
others are inferior, and they coexist in a given space at a same time. For
example, the co-existence of modern and traditional methods of production in
urban and rural sectors; the co existence of wealthy, highly educated elites
with the masses of illiterate poor people; and the coexistence of powerful and
industrialized wealthy nations with the weak, impoverished peasant societies in
the international economy etc.
(ii) The co-existences which we mentioned above are chronic, not just the
transitional. Thus it is not a temporary phenomenon which in time will eliminate
the discrepancy between the superior and inferior elements.
(iii) The degrees of superiority or inferiority have an inherent tendency to
increase, rather diminishing As the productivity gap between a DC industry and
its counter-part in LDCs goes on to widen day by day.
(iv) The inter relations between superior and inferior elements are of such
nature that superior element does little or nothing to pull up the inferior.
International
Dualism:
There are four components of
international dualism:
(i) There exist greater differences in between different countries and
geographical regions regarding per capita incomes.
(ii) These differences are not temporary and short termed, rather they are
chronic. As the standard of living enjoyed by an average Pakistani and that of
an American is different for centuries, not for decades.
(iii) These differences go on increasing, rather decreasing. As the growth
rates of GNP and that of GNP per capita have really been widened between
developed countries and under-developed countries.
(iv) The inter-relationships between rich and poor countries in international
economy are of such a nature that they have promoted the growth of the rich
countries at the cost of poor countries.
Factors of
International Dualism:
The following factors have been found responsible for international dualism:
(i) The DCs have a power to control and manipulate world resources and commodity
markets to their advantage.
(ii) The foreign investment activities by MNCs.
(iii) The privileged access of rich nations to scarce raw material.
(iv) The export of unsuitable and inappropriate science and technology.
(v) The transfer of out-dated and irrelevant systems of education to
societies where education is considered as a key component in the process
of development.
(vi) Dumping policies pursued by the rich countries which discourage
industrialization efforts of UDCs.
(vii) The harmful international trade theories and policies which have confined
the UDCs to export just primary products.
(viii) The harmful aid policies pursued by donors which help in perpetuating
the international dualistic economic structures.
(ix) The creation of elites in poor
countries who are influenced by the external ideas.
(x) The transfer of unsuitable
methods of university training for unrealistic and often irrelevant international professional standards, for instance the externally
conceived degree requirements for doctors, engineers, technicians and
economists.
(xi) The international brain-drain
which has encouraged the international mobility to the rich nations because of handsome salaries etc.
(xii) The demoralizing
'Demonstration Effect' of luxury consumption on the part of wealthy people both at home and abroad, as propagated in through foreign movies and magazine advertisements.
No doubt, most of the problems arising out of international poverty are due
to international capitalistic system, yet the poverty of UDCs can not be
entirely attributed to the behavior of rich countries. Thus we conclude
international dualism with the remarks given by Hans Singer:
"The growth in the
rich countries has led to develop the most sophisticated, costly and capital
intensive technologies, mortality reducing and diseases control measures etc.
All such have led to create population explosion, rising unemployment and
inability to develop their own technological capacities".
Domestic/Local
Dualism:
Above we told international dualism where we showed that greater differences
exist regarding social and economic aspects between the rich countries and poor
countries. The same like situation also exists in case of poor countries at the
domestic levels. It is shown by the following arguments:
(i) The standards of living vary greatly between the top 20% and the bottom
40% of the population. The majority of the rich reside in big cities like
Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad in Pakistan, while the great cluster of mass
poverty are generally found in the rural regions.
Not to talk of disparities in life standard of the rich and the poor of the
UDCs, there also exist the pockets of great wealth co-existing with spreading
slums. The case of exalted buildings and increasing Katchi Abadies (Muddy
Shelters) in Karachi is
before us. The phenomenon of inferior and superior not only exists in respect of
distribution of wealth, income and power, it is also available in the
technological nature of UDCs industrial production. The advanced manufactured
large sector using capital intensive technologies co exists with labor
intensive, small scale activities catering for limited local needs.
(ii) The coexistences of a few rich accompanied by mass poverty, and the craze
to use capital intensive technologies by a few producers accompanied by labor
intensive technologies by majority of the producers go on increasing, rather
disappearing.
(iii) The gap between the rich and the poor, and between modern and traditional
methods of production shows signs of growing even wider, not only within
individual UDCs, but also among the 3rd world countries as a group. Countries
like South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan and Malaysia etc. have experienced higher
growth rates of per capita. While Pakistan India, Bangladesh and Ghana etc.,
have shown a little growth in per capita income. Again, the gap between the rich
and the poor within the dualistic economies is also widening.
(iv) In case of UDCs one does not find any relationship between the rising
wealth of modern enclaves and improvement in the living standards of traditional
society. In other words, in case of dual societies one does not find the
existence of "Spread Effects". It means that the growth of the superior is
keeping inferior more weaker and inferior.
