The idea of the third world is associated with underdevelopment.
Third world is a notion that was developed by the French economist and sociologist Alfred Sauvy in the early 1950s . The concept derives from the idea of the third estate , which is used with reference to the organization of society in the so-called Old Regime .
At that time, society was divided into three classes: the nobility , the clergy and the third estate , made up of the bourgeoisie and the peasants. Sauvy started from this idea and drew a parallel that allowed him to explain the formation of the world in the times of the Cold War (began at the end of the Second World War and in force until the fall of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics ).
Sauvy differentiated between Western and capitalist countries, socialist or communist countries and the rest of the nations. In this sense, the first world corresponded to industrialized capitalism , the second world to socialism and the third world to countries that did not belong to any of the previous groups.
The third world and underdevelopment
After the fall of the socialist bloc, the second world ceased to exist as such. In this way, the concept of third world began to be used to name underdeveloped countries : that is, those that have a low development index, a high rate of malnutrition , educational problems and poor public health, to name a few characteristics. There are those who even speak of a fourth world to name the most backward nations in the world due to their enormous poverty and structural problems.
The concept of the third world is very difficult to define, since it is not something with very precise limits, but it is essential to know it in depth to work on its eradication and build a more just world, in which poverty and imbalance of opportunities .
Although the lack of resources of a portion of society is something as old as humanity itself, the notion of third world refers especially to the countries of Asia , Latin America and Africa that, despite housing three quarters of the world population, suffered and continue to suffer a high level of exploitation, contempt and neglect.
Third world countries suffer from structural problems.
The Lacoste look
Another author who dealt with the topic of the third world was Yves Lacoste , a geographer in whose work "Geography of Underdevelopment" points out a series of characteristics that describe with great precision and in a timely manner the reality experienced by underdeveloped countries; Let's look at some of them below:
- Poor and insufficient nutrition, which leads to a series of diseases and alterations in physical and mental development, with the corresponding consequences in social integration.
- A high percentage of illiteracy , infant mortality and epidemics, phenomena that are included in the category of population deficiencies .
- Resources that the people do not take advantage of or do not use in the best possible way, due to the aforementioned deficiencies and many others.
- Much of agricultural production does not generate the expected benefits, given that the techniques typical of developed countries are not applied nor are there favorable commercial relations at the international level.
- Accented weakness of the middle class and a clear delay in the infrastructure of the cities.
- Excessive restrictions on industrialization.
- Absence of the tertiary sector.
- * child exploitation, and a worrying unemployment rate.
- Third world countries often depend on others to sustain themselves economically.
- A social inequality impossible to ignore.
- Awareness of belonging to the third world, something that threatens development due to the contempt they receive from other countries.
Other uses of the third world concept
"Third World" is also the name of an album by the Argentine musician Fito Páez . It was released in 1990 and has ten songs, including several that became Argentine rock classics such as "And give joy to my heart" and "It was love» .
TercerMundo , likewise, is the name of a rock band from Ecuador . It was founded in 1988 and has released more than a dozen albums.