Myth Of Development

Oswaldo Rivero surprising us from the first moment because of the tittle of the book: The Myth

of Development. In which raises the idea of the necessity to overcome this “myth” that has served as

justification to impose a system that has not led to improved well-being throughout the world but has

deepened inequalities. After more than a half century of development theories and policies,some 156

countries are still “developing” and only four, which represents less than 2 per cent of the group

population, have really achieved the so-called “development”.

On the contrary, this ideology of the more the better, the material progress at any cost,

regardless of the environment and the natural resources; the belief that it can be applied to every

societies the samepattern of growth and nation-system model, regardless of cultural conditions,

historical... and, among others, the thought that the mechanism of this system can work endlessly, is

sinking us deeper and faster in the author calls: “Physical- social imbalance” about which will speak

During the decolonizing fever the past century, UN Charter was applying the principle of self-

determinationwithout concern for the political, social and cultural factors that determine the viability

and the governability of a nation-state. As O. Rivero point in his book this minimum prerequisites are:

the capacity to provide well-being for its population, the availability of competitive enterprises,

technology, food, energy, as well the probability to respect human rights. But during thisperiod, there

was the belief that it was impossible to have development without independence, even if they were

poor with international aid they would be able to reduce the gap that separated them from the already

industrialized countries and they would reach the desired Dorado.

But the reality today shows us that the possibility to develop these countries economically and

sociallythrough Aid is far from the truth. This idea propagated by the political classes and

international technocracies has generated what know as: “quasi nation-states”.

In this kind of states political authority emerged before the national cultural identity and before

the development of a true middle class and a unifying national market. They have a largely

unemployed population that livesin poverty and outside the global consumer society that is being

pushed as the ultimate goal for the prosperity and happiness. Quasi nation-states do not have control

of their economic activities and even large parts of their territories, in hands of insurgent groups or

similar. In many of them political life itself is controlled from abroad and if they have any kind of

foreign policyis focused on everything that relates about Aid and foreign debt.

The globalization of the financial world, is one of the phenomena that has most potently

impaired in the loss of national sovereignty, states cannot control their own currency, the speculation,

interest rates… Democracy begins to erode, because the citizens have no way to influence their own

country economy. We areunder a command of a kind of anonymous global economy and financial

dictatorship non-elected by us. A new aristocracy arises in the shadows, getting great benefits without

giving anything in return: Transnational Corporations. A data that impresses me in the book was:

“100 most powerful transnational corporations sells more that the exports totals of 120 so- called

developing countries”They exert a strong influence on the government policies, but do not want to establish any link

between their global negotiations and the problems that these often cause: global social, economic and

environmental problems. These should be resolve by the governments without interferencing in the

transnationals’ markets… It crazy! This process is generating a power vacuum: on one hand...