What are the obstacles to growth of any country?

What could be the obstacles to growth of any country? In order to be able to reasonably tackle this
question, we should first analyse the meaning of the word “growth” itself. What does the growth of a
country imply? The growth of a country is the state of prosperous development economically, culturally,
educationally, scientifically, socially and in numerous other aspects. No one can ever stumble upon a
country without any challenge to its growth in this whole world as obstacles are omnipresent and
omnigenous. However, obstacles can be overcome with the implementation of proper strategies but
most importantly, with the strong will to succeed.

Obstacles can be natural, man-made, due to lack of resources of capital, lack of entrepreneurship and
risk-taking, lack of desire for change and exploitation by foreign power. So as to forge a better idea of
the nuances of obstacles, they are hierarchized as “basic”, “important” and “secondary”. As the old
dictum says “there is no smoke without fire”, evidence from history, past and present failures of
economically advanced countries are potential indicators of the obstacles that any other country can
encounter. By studying the impact that these failures have on a country’s development, obstacles to the
growth of a country could be classified into the above mentioned categories and used to inform the
world leaders which ones are to be the most dreaded. In addition to that, past experiences are a real
help in dealing with present obstacles and easily surmount them with existing solutions.

Nothing can be a better guide to the economical obstacles of a country than Macroeconomics which is a
branch of Economics that deals with the performance, structure, behaviour and decision-making by the
entire economy. By studying aggregated indicators such as GDP( Gross Domestic Product),
unemployment rates and price indices, one can understand the factors that hinder the economical
progress of a country and the determinants of a long-run economic growth. One prominent example
would be the 2008 recession which plunged industrialized countries in dilemma, leaving hundreds and
thousands of people unemployed and without a home. Fortunately, leaders came up with the idea of
the “stimulus package” which was one of the remedies to the current financial crisis. Another vivid
example would be Mauritius. Our small islands economic challenges started resurfacing in 2006 which
marked the end of the country’s long-standing sugar quotas in the European market and the flood of
cheap Chinese clothes. However, outsourcing and diversification of industries appeared as the panaceas
to the economic problem of Mauritius.

Moving to the “basic” obstacles of growth, we come across education. How can we expect the growth of
a country without a high literacy rate and fully educated population? Education is the pathway to
success and is a crucial factor in overcoming the obstacles to growth. Limited access to education is
probably the most influential aspect of the downfall of a country’s growth. Statistics tell the truth and
one glance is enough to know that the country’s showing the lowest literacy rates are the ones facing
deep obstacles to growth. The African countries make the bottom of the list with literacy rates ranging
from 70% to a mere 26%. Education, of uttermost importance, is being heavily ignored in these parts on
the world and this has driven the countries into deep turmoil. However, Mauritius has successfully
emerged and shines in prosperity with a literacy rate nearing 90%. Indeed one of the several reasons
why Mauritius stands out among the top in the world is because the government is investing heavily on
education.

Another basic obstacle to growth would be the geographical location. Geographical positioning on the
globe determines the climate of the country, resources available to finally lead to the possibilities of
growth of the country. As obvious as it seems, a country situated on the equator will be far better off
than one located in the North Atlantic. Favourable climate conditions entices crop cultivation and may
even encourage development in the tourism industry. Singapore, which possesses only about a third of
equivalent Mauritius’ land, has one of the highest success rates in the world as it put to use its strategic
position on the globe. However, Japan has known a considerable decline in growth since the tsunami
which occurred early in 2011. Natural calamities are a major hindrance to the growth of a country.
Moreover, the unpredicted Fukishima-Daiichi disaster, following the tsunami drowned the country in
even more despair as it was a major source of energy to the country. Japan is found in an earthquake
zone and this has declined its growth in several ways.

“Secondary” obstacles may include the social aspect of obstacles that many countries take for granted.
For example gender inequality is a waste of intellectual growth. According to the latest report released
by the Central Statistics Office of Mauritius, 13% of Women are unemployed in contrast to 4.6% of
unemployed men. Even though women prove to be intellectually more capable than men, they are still
being suppressed by orthodox thinking, patriarchal marriages and also household responsibilities.
Gender disparity is a huge obstacle to the growth of a country as it undermines the potential of the
female gender. Social instability also acts against the growth mantra. A country experiencing ethnic
conflicts is temporarily “handicapped” to growth. For instance, Rwanda has barely recovered from the
past genocide and has had difficulties to cope with the wider world.

Political obstacles could be considered as “important” if we consider the current conflicts in the Arab
countries concerning political oppressions. A government ruling by coercion and suppressing civil rights
is prone to suppress the growth of its country itself. How can we expect the prosperity of a country
where the rights of the working labour is ignored? Indeed, instead of investing on the population’s
welfare facilities, a totalitarian government focuses mainly on its military forces to keep the population
under its wrath. Growth is more favourable in democratic societies than dictatorships. The sudden
revolution of Arad countries has led to the understanding that a country can only positively prosper,
when its population is satisfied of their treatment as citizens. In Libya, rebels are still fighting for their
freedom from the General Khadafy, who is now considered responsible for the death of thousands of his
own citizens. The suffering of a nation leads to a decline in the growth of a country.

Obstacles to the growth of a country are diverse and numerous. However, nowadays they are not
inevitable. With the combination of past experiences, analysis of statistics and proper strategies,
obstacles can be surmounted successfully. From the arguments debated in this essay, it can be
concluded that there are many factors intertwined together with can lead to a positive growth of a
country. Once again, growth does not simply imply financial growth, but encloses several aspects.
Hence, the concluding note of this essay is that to be able to tackle the obstacles to the growth a
country, one must consider all the aspects of growth.