The Growth of Globalisation - Essay Example

Topic: Globalisation Student’s name Course name Lecturer’s name 20th August 2011 Introduction Globalisation is defined as the unification of the economic order of the world through different methods such as reduction in export fees, tariffs and quotas on imports (Bhagwati, 2004). The objective of globalisation is to increase services, goods and material wealth through competition, specialization and international relations. In this regard, globalisation is perceived as the process through which cultures, societies and regional economies become integrated through trade, transportation and communication. The main drivers of globalisation include social cultural, economic, biological, political and technological factors (Bhagwati, 2004). It is imperative to note that any biological, economical, political, technological or social cultural aspect that is widely accepted and popular in the world is said to be globalized. This includes the aspect of democracy and denunciation of dictatorship among the countries of the world. The growth of globalisation has far reaching impacts or effects on any developments that take place in the political arena. This is true in all the countries of the world including the developed countries such as the United States and other western countries. The reason for this is that globalisation has decreased significantly the aspect of the state. Supra-states or sub-states such as World Trade Organization, the European Union, the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the G8 countries have taken over the importance of the state and become the main decision making organs under which many other nations follow (Bhagwati, 2004). This means that the sovereignty and the policy making power of different states has waned or demeaned with time making it difficult for any particular country to operate alone in the contemporary world. Even superpowers such as the United States have gone to lose their popularity as a result of trade imbalance which has been brought about by the issue of globalisation. Globalisation has its negative and positive aspects. One of the positive aspects of globalisation is the increased flow of goods and services in different countries which has increased the volumes of trade between countries. This has not only made it possible for countries to achieve a favourable balance of trade but it has also improved the living conditions of the people in different countries. Even small scale farmers in agricultural rich regions are able to export their produce to other parts of the world. At the same time the same farmers are able to import capital goods from other countries thanks to globalisation (Bhagwati, 2004). The second positive aspect of globalisation is that it has helped in the fight against major terminal diseases such as HIV/AIDS, diabetes and many others because the flow of medicine and medical services has also been accelerated by globalisation. Doctors from around the world are now able to practice and work in other countries and the exchange of information has greatly improved the medical profession in different countries of the world and this has greatly necessitated the fight against terminal illnesses around the world. The third positive aspect of globalisation is the reduction in barriers to investment and increased in comes globally which has paved way for direct investment by investors from foreign countries. This is particularly the case with the third world countries which have experienced an influx of foreign investors in the past two decades due to reduction in barriers in investment. As a result job opportunities and the rate of employments has increased drastically and rapidly in third world countries as more industries, private companies and other businesses are established by foreign investors who take advantage of the unexploited and potential investment opportunities in the third world countries (Sirkin et al., 2008). Creation of employment opportunities in such countries has not only improved the standards of living but it has also increased the rate at which people in third world countries pursue higher levels of education which were previously reserved for high the rich and the high income earners only. Hence, it is evident that globalisation has brought about numerous positive aspects which have increased and accelerated growth in many countries around the world. Needless to say is the fact that globalisation has also yielded into different negative aspects which have come as a result of different changes brought about by globalisation. As mentioned there above, globalisation has transformed the world into a global village where everybody must fit or get swept away by the immense changes taking place and accelerated by globalisation. One of the greatest requirements in the contemporary global village is flexibility in all spheres of life whether economical, financial, political, technological or social cultural spheres of life (Sirkin et al., 2008). Failure to embrace flexibility which necessitates change means that a country, a group of people or even a religious group is bound to fail due to the unwavering currents brought by globalisation. This is the case witnessed in the Middle Eastern countries and several other countries in the Horn of Arica such as Libya and Egypt which have witnessed a wave of revolution that has resulted into the deaths of thousands of people and which has also seen long serving presidents sent parking by their own citizens. It is imperative to realize that globalisation calls for increased democratic space in order to enable people transact freely and carry out their political, economic and human rights freely without interference from the state. As a matter of fact, just like it has been stated above the power of the state has continued to dwindle due to globalisation meaning that there is no particular country that can claim to operate along in the vacuum without interfering with the affairs of other countries. Long serving presidents such as Muammar Gaddafi and Hussein Mubarak of Libya and Egypt respectively failed to realize that globalization has transformed the world into a global village where people exchange information closely and people become aware of what is going on in other countries (Sirkin et al., 2008). Their tight grip to power and failure to embrace change and become flexible in the manner they govern their countries has been shut down by the increased violence in their countries and even resulted into ousting of the two president from their positions of authority into poppers. The reason for this is that globalisation demands for greater levels of flexibility in policy making and giving people freedom to contribute to the affairs of their country without restrains especially when such contributions are aimed at improving the welfare and the wellbeing of the people (Sirkin et al., 2008). However, Egypt and Libya continued to experience tight reign of dictatorship where democracy was perceived as an enemy of progress. However, the people’s will driven by the aspect of globalisation have enabled the citizens in the two countries to realize that they cannot develop further when their hands are tied by lack of freedom to freely express themselves and their ideas. My experience about what is happening in Egypt and Libya is that the two countries have been overtaken by globalisation and thus they have to pay an immense cost in order to catch up with the rest of the world. This is because the information and the digital revolution necessitated by globalisation have brought numerous changes in the manner in which the people of the world communicate and learn. The people of Libya and Egypt have also been able to communicate and learn from the rest of the world about what democracy really means and the benefits of embracing democracy in their countries. This has been made possible by the rapid exchange of information. However, the ruling authorities failed to acknowledge the information and the digital revolution brought by globalisation and failed to take advantage of these changes (Sirkin et al., 2008). The result has been rise in violence and continued damage to property and infrastructure. I have very strong views that globalisation calls for increased democratic space because people are closer in the contemporary world than in any other time (Sirkin et al., 2008). Just to reiterate, the world is now a global village and the exchange of information and ideas is faster than before. People are yearning to become competitive in order to improve their standards of living just like their friends in mature democratic countries. People are yearning for increased freedom or space to exercise their rights as citizens and not to live like slaves in their countries. People are yearning to have their voice heard in the political field in order to have their input factored into the running of the affairs of their countries. Egypt and Libya which failed to give people the much desired democratic freedom and space have had to undergo through a painful revolution. It is imperative to note that globalisation has decreased the power of the state or the power held by any particular individual in the name of a president or a king. Globalisation has also rendered irrelevant the aspect of some countries being referred to as superpowers because every country, every leadership and every territory is now under a close watch from other countries than ever before (Sirkin et al., 2008). It is therefore important to state that only the leaders that will respect the will of the people and give people their rightful place in the running of their country’s affairs will overcome the wave revolution that has been witnessed in Egypt and Libya. References Bhagwati, J. (2004). In Defense of Globalization. (Oxford, New York, Oxford University Press) Sirkin, H. et al. (2008). Globality: Competing with everyone from everywhere for everything. (New York, Business Plus) Read More