DR CONGO: CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES OF POVERTY.
I always wonder the prevalence of world's economic inequalities. Wealthy countries remain richer whereas the poor countries remain increasingly poorer. The economic growth of the USA illustrates this huge gap, for it has known a tremendous increase in real Gross Domestic Product (GDP). There are two factors driving the economic growth in the United States, for this rich nation has an increase in both aggregate demand and aggregate supply (productive capacity). That is why the United States is economically known as a wealthy nation, while, on the other hand, countries such as the D.R.C and others are falling apart in the global economy. .
The lack of a more diverse economy is the main impediment to the development the D.R.C. This country receives important external demands, and of course, these demands would be a sign of economic prosperity. However, the increase in demands in doesn't make the country thrive economically, for we only depend on the exportation of primary commodities such as diamond and gold, minerals with an unstable price in the global market. The aftermath is that the exportation of minerals is a glitch to D. R Congo, for it contributes to the extreme poverty in a certain way. For instance, Congo has 80 percent of the world's coltan, one of the most needed minerals to manufacture electronic devices. We export this material, but later we're not able to rebuy small things such as cell phones and computers, and surprisingly in Congo someone can spend his life-time without seeing or touching a telephone because of the high price. .
However, the experience of other nations can instruct us to avoid stumbling economically. Let's take the example Nigerian in the 1980s. In the first half of the 1980s, Nigeria enjoyed a huge oil boom. The government made a catastrophic mess of this boom, borrowing heavily and spending money on massively wasteful projects saturated with corruption.