Positive and negative effect of industrialization

Social and economic effects of industrialization

1. Positive effects of industrialization   Industrialisation is normally associated with advanced technology . People who live in industrialising countries have an opportunity to get education and training . They   also acquire new skills from their colleagues at work. Generally, the population of that particular country is exposed to new ideas and ways of doing things as foreigners are attracted into the country.  Remember that when people are exposed to a wide variety of goods and services, their quality of life also improves and their basic needs are fully met. The people become happier and they are able to make better choices.

2. Negative effects of industrialisation Industrialisation tends to occur in urban areas . This is so because all the requirements it needs, such as infrastructure and market , are mostly found in towns . A lot of people from rural areas and other places flock into urban areas with the hope of getting employment. This may lead to over- crowding which results in problems like shortage of social facilities, rise in crime rate, poor   sanitation and many other undesirable things.

3. Negative effects of industrialisation cont. T he arrival of foreign labour and technology leads to introduction of foreign culture . The traditional or local culture (language, religion and other factors) is affected . For example, in the past Batswana used to believe in their ancestors ( Badimo ), but the advent of industrialisation and other economic             forces have led to the disappearance of this traditional religion . Learner, have you also observed that the people who live in urban areas, especially young generations, feel very comfortable speaking English. This is because English is used as an official language in   Botswana , therefore, it is used for communication so that non-Tswana speakers in such areas can also understand what is being spoken . This spoken English is promoted by modern education and the media such as newspapers, radio, television,   magazines and others. Young people are giving more attention to English than to   their mother tongue.

4. Negative effects of industrialisation cont. I believe you have also realised that an increase of modern industries  may cause family breakdown . The able-bodied or the active group leave their families in rural areas to go and seek better opportunities in urban areas or towns and some of them   never come back . Men who are mostly attracted by this industrialisation may find new partners at their work places and forget about their wives and children back home in the rural areas . This has led to families breaking down and mushrooming of female -headed families.

5. Negative effects of industrialisation cont. Some people have brought assertion that division of labour and specialisation breed boredom and lack of craftsmanship . This is because one cannot have pride in the       product that he or she has produced because it may have been done by many people . When a person performs one task every day every time, that person may get bored. Therefore , those particular people get stressed and tend to dislike their work.

6. Positive economic effects of industrialisation Establishment of modern industries is associated with mass production and an increase in the provision of goods and services. Therefore , this promotes economic development and increase of the Gross National Product of the country . When there   is mass production, the prices of goods normally go down and the consumers are able to buy a variety of goods at affordable prices . New efficient goods are introduced into the country, for instance, production of electrical appliances such as   televisions, vacuum cleaners and many others . An increase in the percentage of customers who can afford to buy these electrical appliances shows that there is economic development taking place.

7. Positive economic effects of industrialisation cont. Learner, you must also understand that when a country has its own industries, it is more sell-reliant and does not rely or depend on other countries for many things. For example , South Africa is regarded as one of the richest countries in Africa because it is industrialised . This country produces a lot of products locally and buys very few products from other countries . Some of its industries are mining which is promoted by a wide variety of minerals. Agriculture is also advanced due to favourable climatic conditions and good soils. Other sectors doing well are tourism and manufacturing industries .

8. Positive economic effects of industrialisation cont. I hope you have realised that industrialisation   creates employment . One of the few well known effects is that industrialisation leads to employment of citizens. As more industries arc established more and more people get employment. The income from industries also contributes to the general development of the country. You know that the arrival of any new construction company or industry attracts unemployed locals even when posts have not been advertised . Employment applications are delivered every day at the factories and those who qualify are hired depending on the             availability of vacancies . Modern industries need different levels of skills in order to carry out the production processes . Therefore, different types of labourers are employed such as unskilled, semi-skilled and skilled ones.

9. Positive economic effects of industrialisation cont. Industrialisation is set up in order to raise money for further investment . Bear in your mind that the main aim of these modem industries is to make profit. As such, the surplus that they get is used for the expansion of the business . Small industries usually expand into very large industries by investing their surplus . Multi-national companies which originate from very rich countries have expanded to the extent that they even set up their businesses Mother countries and continents.

10. Negative economic effects of industrialisation Industrialisation may cause unfair distribution of resources. At times people become greedy and forget about other people's welfare . This problem is more common in capitalist states than in planned economies . Very few people accumulate wealth for themselves while the majority live in poverty . The businessmen may increase the prices of goods without considering people's wealth.

11. Negative economic effects of industrialisation cont. Agriculture and craft production may be neglected as a result of industrialisation . Remember that before the introduction of modem industries people depended on     agriculture . They grew crops, reared animals and produced craft goods. Since the able-bodied people carried out the farming, there was self- sufficiency in food. Agriculture , which was left in the hands of the old and younger people, went down or   declined as they could not produce enough for themselves. Able -bodied people   migrate to towns and cities where industries are mostly located. There are also the environmental effects of industrialisation which we will learn about now.

12. Effects of Industrialisation on the Environment              There are different types of pollution which are caused by industries including air,     water and land pollution . The emission of industrial substances poses danger to      living things including plants. Air pollution is the most dangerous because it does not    know territorial and continental boundaries . For instance, industrial pollutants emitted by industrialised countries in the Europe can actually affect other places which are thousands of miles away . This has led to the depletion of the ozone layer and adverse changes in the climatic conditions. Industrial fumes can also pollute the environment be it in developed or in developing countries As if this does not do a lot of harm already. there is yet again massive degradation of the natural ecosystem in general. For instance, water sources in a number of places are polluted by industrial refuse.

13.   The reckless use of natural   resources Another effect of industrialisation worth noting is  the reckless use of natural   resources.   Industrialisation over-uses and depletes natural resources which are         non-renewable. You know very well that natural resources are scarce and unevenly       distributed in our country. These scarce resources are, however, used for production            of most of the goods we consume. For example, fossil fuels such as gas, crude oil          and coal are used on a daily basis in most industries. Other non-renewable           resources are minerals which need to be used in a sustainable way. Non-renewable       resources are those that can never be replaced once used.

14. Overcrowding Industrialisation also  gives rise to overcrowding.   Modern industries are usually located in towns and cities because this is where infrastructure is well developed .   The existence of these industries causes overcrowding as a lot of people move into    urban areas in search of employment opportunities and other services that are   normally lacking in rural areas . This overcrowding is associated with environmental problems such as poor housing which often leads to mushrooming of shanty towns, bad sanitation which is caused by poor disposal of rubbish, and lack of hygiene which may result in diseases such as diarrhoea , malaria, cholera and others.