Eight Regions of the World - Assignment Example

? Eight Regions of the World: A Comparison Eight Regions of the World: A Comparison Introduction It is no secret that welive in a rapidly growing and evolving world. The world’s population is changing and expanding; yet countries are more interconnected than ever. Economies are becoming fluid and trade more open. The simple matter remains, however, that as interconnected as the world is becoming, there are still stark regional differences that must be noted. There is, for example, still a vast disparity of wealth between first and third world countries. Couple that with the differences in government country by country, in addition to various cultural differences, and the mutual understanding of these regional differences become even more important as we move through the 21st century. There are eight commonly defined regions in the world today, each with multiple states and cultures represented. What follows is a brief synopsis of one state in each region, its form of government, and the state of its economic growth in relation to the rest of the region. European Region Europe is typically divided into two or three separate regions due to its vast landscape, population, and cultural differences. For the purposes of the comparison, however, let us just focus on the country of Romania. The government of Romania is a form of a republic, drastically changed from the form of government in place prior to 1991. Today, Romania is in the European Union, pledging to maintain a form of democracy in their country. The president of Romania is elected by a popular and democratic vote. This office does have a term limitation of two terms, of five years each. Like much of Europe, the legislative body in Romania is dominated the by the Parliament, which has two distinct houses, both contained members elected via the democratic process. Romania has a sizeable military for a country of its size. . They spend 1.9% of their GDP on the military annually, which ranks them 76th in the world in terms of expenditures. While Romania has recently entered the European Union, its economy is still lagging behind that of other countries in the region. Widespread poverty exists and the country has had to receive economic reform packages from the World Bank to stay solvent. Their per capita GDP is $12,500, which ranks it 98th in the world. North American Region Mexico is a country in the North American region that has been relatively stable for decades now, even though it has its share of tumultuous times. The current system of government is that of a federation and has been in existence since 1917. The government is representative of the people and is a hybrid of the democratic and republic forms of government. Mexico has a democracy, where the president and members of the legislative body must be elected to office by a democratic vote of the people. The Mexican military is quite sizeable due to its policy of compulsory service. All eligible males are expected to serve for a minimum of 12 months. Beyond this, however, Mexico spends little on their military – only 0.5% of their GDP. This ranks them 159th in the world. They depend on their allies, namely the United States, for assurances of protection from potential threats. Mexico’s economy has benefited from the North American Free Trade Agreement and continues to grow annually. While they are the poorest country in this region of states, their annual GDP is $14,700. This ranks them as 86th in the world. Latin American Region Let us focus on the country of Ecuador when discussing states in the Latin American region. Like most countries in this region, a democratically elected president governs Ecuador. An interesting fact about Ecuador’s democracy is that voting is actually mandatory for any citizen aged 18-65 who can read. There are 130 members of the legislative branch of government, representing all provinces of Ecuador. Each of these members are elected by the people as well, serving out four year terms. Ecuador has a well-established army, navy, and air force. They do have a selective draft and have nearly 4 million males and 4 million females eligible for service. They spend 0.9% of their GDP on military services. Ecuador is not the poorest country in the Latin American region, but it has certainly not lived up to its potential given the vast amount of oil present in its borders. Their annual per capita GDP is $8,500, which ranks it 120th in the world. Oceanic Region The oceanic area may be the smallest of the eight regions, but its diversity certainly makes it stand out from the others. Indonesia is a country made up of thousands of islands, yet all come under the control of a republic system of government. The country has a democratically elected president and legislative body. One difference in this particular government, however, is that the president has his or her own council of members, which he appoints. They are not democratically elected and the legislature does not have to approve the appointments. Indonesia has a sizeable military and over 65 million males alone eligible for service. They posses all major branches in their armed service and are not afraid to spend money to keep them outfitted. They spend 3% of their GDP alone on their military, which ranks them as 41st in the world. This quite a bit considering that their annual per capita GDP is only $4,700, or 157th in the world. They are also near the bottom, in economic terms, compared to other states in the oceanic region. Sub-Saharan African Region Ghana is a country in the sub-Saharan region of Africa that has a storied history, and one that is continue to evolve. It is debatable whether or not this country truly has a democratic form of government, but on paper it does. The military rules the government until 1993, but since then the constitution divides power in the country between a president, parliament, cabinet, a council of state, and a judiciary system. While the government is elected by a democratic vote where all adult citizens are able to participate, regional population does not elect the legislature proportionally. Ghana does have an active army, name and air force. They have no mandatory service requirement. While they spend 1.7 of their GDP on the military, which is 86th in the world, this is startling little considering their overall poor economic state. One of the poorest countries in the world, and certainly in the Sub-Saharan region of Africa, Ghana has a per capita GDP of $3,100, which ranks it as 172nd in the world. The economy is improving, however, in recent years thanks to a more stable government. Russian Region Russia has become a region in its own right because of the many states that used to make up the USSR. One such modern day state is Uzbekistan. The official government of Uzbekistan is a democracy, but the United States Department of State and the European Union both define Uzbekistan as “an authoritarian state with limited civil rights” (Adle, 2005, p. 232). There has only been one president since Uzbekistan became a country back in 1992. Term limitations put in place have simply been extended to allow Islam Karimov to remain in power. Owed to its fame as one of only two double landlocked countries in the world, Uzbekistan has no navy. They do, however, have a strong army and air force. All eligible males over the age of 18 must serve a minimum of one year in the military. Due to the instability in the region, the country does spend 3.5% of its GDP on the military, which ranks it as 32nd in the world. Since independence, the economy has gradually grown. Today, the annual GDP is $3300, which ranks it as 168th in the world. It is certainly not the poorest state in the Russian region, but does lag far behind the countries of Russia and Kazakhstan. Middle Eastern Region Yemen is currently an unstable country in the region of the Middle East. While the country is officially a Republic, many observers claim that democracy does not rule the land. While the president is elected by popular vote, the president appoints the prime minister. In addition, only Muslims are permitted to hold government office. Yemen spends more than 6% of the annual GDP on the military, which places it as 7th in the world, and near the top of the Middle East. They have a ground army and air force, whose powers are a bit strengthened by an unstable government. Te economy has suffered quite a bit in recent years and makes it one of the poorest states in this region. The annual GDP is now only $2300, which ranks it as 186th in the world. North African Region Finally, the country of Morocco is situated in the North African Region of the world. The government is still considered to be a parliamentary constitutional monarchy. The prime minister and members of the legislative body, however, are democratic elected by the citizens of the country. While the King of Morocco still retains some power, most power is now in the hands of the executive and legislative, relegating the monarchy to more of a symbolic role. Democracy appears to be on the upswing in Morocco. Morocco has all major branches of the military and has over 7 million male’s eligible for service. They have not mandatory service requirements for citizens, but do have strong volunteer forces, requiring a minimum of 18 months service upon enlistment. The country spends 5% of this GDP on the military, ranking it as 16th in the world. Because Morocco is so close to Europe, closer than any other North African state, its economy has greatly benefited. They now have a $5,100 per capita GDP, ranking it as 150th in the world and one of the more economically stable countries in this region. Conclusion These eight regions of the world are fascinating to study from a geographical and cultural perspective. Each of the eight states represented in this essay demonstrate just how diverse the world truly remains, even in this era of increased connectivity. By understanding the geography of these different lands, we can better learn how to protect ourselves, and to grow economies in developing countries. References Adle, C. (2005). Towards the contemporary period: From the mid-nineteenth to the end of the 20th century. Unesco, 232. Dodds, K. (2011). Ecuador. Geographical, 82(2), 14. Gray, K. (2002). Morocco. Thunderbird International Business Review, 44(3), 379-398. Myers, R. (1992). Ghana. African Affairs, 91(364), 499. Trains, M. (1998). Yemen. Geographical, 70(5), 82. Read More