Assignment: ECONOMIC & SOCIAL GEOGRAPHY

PAPER GUIDELINES

Select a country which is not yet developed. This can be any country except US, Canada, Western Europe, Japan, Australia and New Zealand.

Part 1: Profile of Your Country (3-4 pages of text)

Address the following five characteristics of your selected developing country.

1. Geography: location (include a map), physical size, topography, climate, population, capital city, major resources (energy, mineral, water, arable land, etc.).

2. Economy: GDP (or GNI), GDP/capita, major industries (agriculture, manufacturing, forestry, fishing, services etc.), international trade (exports/imports, trading partners, balance of trade, foreign direct investment).

3. Infrastructure: extent and condition of roads, rail, water ports, airports and communications.

4. Social Well-Being: your country's current social conditions, such as: income distribution, life expectancy, literacy rates, education system (minimum years required), health care system (how good or bad), Human Development Index score for your country (ask me if you can't find it)

5. Government: Type of government (democracy, monarchy, dictatorship, theocracy etc.), level of corruption. Is the government helping of hindering development?

Part 2: Development Recommendations (2-3 pages of text)

Provide development recommendations for each of the following:

1. Natural Resources: Recommend specific ways to make improvements in exploiting natural resources (e.g. process and refine resources, versus exporting them)

2. Infrastructure: Recommend specific improvements in infrastructure (e.g. pave more roads, build rail system, pave more airports etc. - but be more specific than these suggestions)

3. Social Well-Being: Recommend specific improvements to education, training, healthcare, social services and overall human development (life expectancy, income etc.)

4. Overall Evaluation: your personal view of what seem to be the most serious obstacles this country must overcome as it strives to be economically developed.

Writing Guidelines:

• Write your paper in full sentences with paragraphs. Don't use bullet points or other ways of listing information.

• Provide a separate title page that includes the name of your country, your name, and the date. Put a map of your country on the title page.

• Provide a separate bibliography page containing the full citation for each of your sources.

o A minimum of four sources is required. Use a standard writing guide such as the APA Manual in properly citing material.
o Note: an encyclopedia counts as one source only

• Each paper must be at least six full pages in length (about 1500 word count)

o A full page is defined as 1-inch margins on the side and 1½- inch margins at the top and bottom.

• The paper must be typewritten, double-spaced, with proper formatting (12 pt. font, page numbering etc.).

o Use a standard writing guide such as the APA Manual for proper formatting. Columbus State Writing Center can also be of help.
o NOTE: the title page and a bibliography page do not count towards the 6 page minimum requirement.

• Use subheadings (bolded or underlined) to facilitate grading, e.g.

o Geography
o Economy

• Students may use any written or electronic media as sources for the papers. Written media include such items as magazines, journals, newspapers, books, textbooks, and atlases. Students may also use an encyclopedia, but the entire collection (whether in written or electronic form) is counted as one source only. Electronic media include such items as the Internet, FTP sites, CD-ROM, etc.