Globalisation and Development
A concern addressed at many sessions was how economic and social development
can be advanced within the region in order to ameliorate the negative effects that poverty
has on many population processes. In addition, several sessions and one plenary session
focused specially on these issues. Some questions that were addressed included how
population dynamics are affected by globalisation processes, the consequences of
population growth and decline and structural change on social sector needs (education,
health, social security), macroeconomic linkages (savings, labour markets, productivity),
and links between poverty and population change.
Consensus emerged that globalisation and the demographic transition, two of the
major trends in this era, are closely linked. Mortality decline has been affected by flows
of technology and improvements in living standards that have occurred as countries are
integrated into the global system. Fertility change has been driven also by improved
standards of living as well as by attitudinal changes disseminated by the global media. At
the same time, demographic transition has affected globalisation. Movements of
international capital into Southeast Asia have been attracted, in part, by the rapidly
growing, well trained labour forces available in this region. While Japan also has a well
trained labour force, it has attracted less capital in recent years because its labour force
growth had declined while labour costs increased.
A special plenary session was devoted to a debate on whether globalisation has
increased or decreased poverty. Various speakers at this debate argued that while
globalisation has undoubtedly brought some gains to the region, it has also left significant
sectors of the population behind in poverty and efforts now need to be taken to raise the
standard of living of that segment of the population.