BiblioVault - Books about Developing World

At the Dawn of Belt and Road

China in the Developing World

Andrew Scobell

RAND Corporation, 2018

China has always viewed itself as a vulnerable underdeveloped country. In the 1990s, it began negotiating economic agreements and creating China-centric institutions, culminating in the 2000s in numerous institutions and ultimately the Belt and Road Initiative. The authors analyze China’s political and diplomatic, economic, and military engagement with the Developing World and discuss specific countries that are most important to China.

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Beyond a Western Bioethics

Voices from the Developing World

Angeles Tan Alora and Josephine M. Lumitao, Editors

Georgetown University Press, 2001

In Beyond a Western Bioethics, physicians Angeles Tan Alora and Josephine M. Lumitao join eight other contributors to provide a comprehensive exploration of bioethical issues outside of the dominant American and western European model. Using the Philippines as a case study, they address how a developing country's economy, religion, and culture affect the bioethical landscape for doctors, patients, families, and the society as a whole.

American principles of medical ethics assume the primacy of individual autonomy, the importance of truth-telling, and secular standards of justice and morality. In the Philippines, these standards are often at odds with a culture in which family relationships take precedence over individualism, and ideas of community, friendship, and religion can deeply influence personal behavior. Pervasive poverty further complicates the equation. Contributors move from a general discussion of the moral vision informing health care decisions in the Philippines to an exploration of a wide range of specific cases: family planning, care of the elderly, organ transplants, death and dying, medical research, AIDS care, doctor-patient relationships, informed consent, and the allocation of scarce health-care resources.

Written for both students and professionals, the book provides a much-needed perspective on how medical ethics are practiced in a developing nation, and it successfully challenges the wisdom of global bioethical standards that do not account for local cultural and economic differences.

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Cancer Screening in the Developing World

Case Studies and Strategies from the Field

Edited by Madelon L. Finkel

Dartmouth College Press, 2018

Worldwide, cancer is responsible for one in eight deaths—more than AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria combined. This global burden starkly illustrates the inequality between the developed and the developing world. While the majority of people living in developed countries receive timely treatment, those living in developing countries are not as fortunate and their survival rates are much lower—not only due to delays in diagnosis, but also to a lack of personnel, a paucity of treatment facilities, and the unavailability of many medications. Routine screening—a mainstay in the developed world—could greatly increase the likelihood of identifying individuals with early stage cancers and thus reduce the number of people who present with advanced disease. This book represents a critical addition to the literature of global health studies. Focusing on cervical, breast, and oral cancers, these case studies highlight innovative strategies in cancer screening in a diverse array of developing countries. The authors discuss common issues and share how obstacles—medical, economic, legal, social, and psychological—were addressed or overcome in specific settings. Each chapter offers an empirical discussion of the nature and scope of a screening program, the methodology used, and its findings, along with a candid discussion of challenges and limitations and suggestions for future efforts.

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The Economics of Killing

How the West Fuels War and Poverty in the Developing World

Vijay Mehta

Pluto Press, 2012

Globalisation has created an interconnected world, but has not diminished violence, militarism and inequality. The Economics of Killing describes how the power of global elites, entrenched under globalisation, has created a deadly cycle of violence.

In this groundbreaking work, Vijay Mehta shows how attempts at peaceful national development are routinely blocked by Western powers. He locates the 2008 financial crisis in US attempts to block China's model of development. He shows how Europe and the US conspire with regional dictators to prevent countries from developing advanced industries, and how this system has fed terrorism.

Mehta argues that a different world is possible, based on policies of disarmament, demilitarisation and sustainable development. This original and thought-provoking book will be of great interest to anyone concerned about the consequences of endless war fuelled by the West.

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Strategies for Primary Health Care

Technologies Appropriate for the Control of Disease in the Developing World

Edited by Julia A. Walsh and Kenneth S. Warren

University of Chicago Press, 1986

Tears of the Crocodile

From Rio to Reality in the Developing World

Neil Middleton

Pluto Press, 1993

Transformative Political Leadership

Making a Difference in the Developing World

Robert I. Rotberg

University of Chicago Press, 2012

Accomplished political leaders have a clear strategy for turning political visions into reality. Through well-honed analytical, political, and emotional intelligence, leaders chart paths to promising futures that include economic growth, material prosperity, and human well-being. Alas, such leaders are rare in the developing world, where often institutions are weak and greed and corruption strong—and where responsible leadership therefore has the potential to effect the greatest change.

In Transformative Political Leadership, Robert I. Rotberg focuses on the role of leadership in politics and argues that accomplished leaders demonstrate a particular set of skills. Through illustrative case studies of leaders who have performed ably in the developing world—among them Nelson Mandela in South Africa, Seretse Khama in Botswana, Lee Kuan Yew in Singapore, and Kemal Ataturk in Turkey—Rotberg examines how these leaders transformed their respective countries. The importance of capable leadership is woefully understudied in political science, and this book will be an important tool in exploring how leaders lead and how nations and institutions are built.

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