As well, proponents feel that the gap between the least developed and highly-developed nations will start to shrink as the world economy becomes truly globalized. However, at the moment this is not happening. In fact, by most economic measurements, the gap is actually widening. The problem to be studied in this paper is this gapùand not just a gap that exists between developing and highly-developed countries but also between developing countries themselves.
The purpose of this study is to examine the widening gap between two developing countries in order to determine (a) why it is happening; and (b) what, if anything, can be done to reverse the trend. The two countries to be examined are Kenya and Malaysia. One (Malaysia) seems to have made significant moves towards industrialization while the other (Kenya) has not, remaining an agrarian nation that will have trouble partaking in globalization. The reason for choosing these two particular countries is that (a) they come from completely separate regions of the world; (b) they both gained their independence at about the same time; and (c) both have had similar styles of semi-democratic, semi-autocratic governments. By contrasting these two countries and analysing the differences in structuring and applying economical, political, and socio-cultural policies in relation to both domestic and international needs, the study should arrive at the identification of factors which determine the economic growth and speed of a particular country's adjustment (or lack of it) to the current global economic system.
The basic research questions being asked in this study are:
In general, what is the difference between countries that develop and do well within the increased globalization and those that do not?
What are the particular differences between Kenya and Malaysia that would account for the different growth rates?
Can these differences or gaps be decreased and eventually eliminated...