Edexcel IGCSEEconomicsGeneral Applications18 Marks

Figure 2 shows various development indicators for two developing countries, Country A and Country B.

(a)Define a developing country.[2]
(b)Using Figure 2, identify and describe two differences in the development levels of Country A and Country B.[4]
(c)Analyse two reasons why countries may remain in a state of underdevelopment.[6]
(d)Evaluate the effectiveness of foreign aid as a strategy to promote economic development in developing countries.[6]

This question uses a diagram from the original paper, which isn't shown here. Open the full paper from the past papers archive to see it.

Mark scheme

Marking points from the official mark scheme. The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.

(a) B1 for low income per capita / low GDP per capita / low living standards
(a) B1 for characteristics such as low human development index / high poverty / reliance on primary sector
(b) M1 for identifying a specific indicator difference (e.g., GDP per capita, life expectancy, literacy rate from Figure 2)
(b) A1 for describing the difference (e.g., Country A has higher GDP per capita than Country B)
(b) M1 for identifying a second specific indicator difference
(b) A1 for describing the difference
(c) M1 for identifying a reason (e.g., lack of human capital, poor infrastructure, political instability)
(c) A1 for explaining how this hinders development (e.g., low education means low productivity)
(c) A1 for further development (e.g., difficulty attracting FDI, perpetuating poverty trap)
(c) M1 for identifying a second reason (e.g., over-reliance on primary products, corruption, high levels of debt)
(c) A1 for explaining how this hinders development (e.g., volatile prices for commodities)
(c) A1 for further development (e.g., vulnerability to external shocks, limited funds for investment)
(d) M1 for identifying a positive aspect of aid (e.g., funds for infrastructure, health/education, disaster relief)
(d) A1 for explaining how this helps development (e.g., improves productive capacity, human capital)
(d) M1 for identifying a negative aspect/limitation of aid (e.g., corruption, dependency, tied aid, inappropriate aid)
(d) A1 for explaining how this hinders development (e.g., misallocation of funds, market distortions)
(d) M1 for evaluative point (e.g., effectiveness depends on type of aid, governance in recipient country, amount of aid, complementary policies)
(d) A1 for developed evaluation (e.g., comparison of different types of aid, long-term sustainability)