Jamaica Research Paper

The modernization theory shows that there are three key elements that moves society in a certain direction, may it be positive or negative. The three key elements are a country’s culture, economy, and government. Once one fails the others plummet, as when one prospers the others follow. Jamaica’s economy failing economy showed exactly how the modernization theory works. The theory began to take place in the 1900’s when the one of the worst recessions shook the world. Oil prices tripled while employment opportunities dropped. By the end of the destructive recession Jamaica, along with many other countries found itself in a hefty amount of debt. Jamaica’s debt amounted to about three and a half billion American dollars. The significance of Jamaica’s …show more content…
Most of Jamaica’s money has had to contribute to the debt owed, this leaves little money for the country to spend on the development of its homes, roads, and people. Schools have also felt the financial burden but the country is working on getting new computers for classrooms. Jamaica’s failed economy has hit some parts of the country harder than it has hit other parts. Areas that have high amounts of tourism, Kingston and Montego Bay, are better off. Jamaican citizens who live in those parts have better housing, ample amounts of food, clean water, and efficient schools. While citizens who live further out have little food, sometimes unclean water, poor housing, and gang violence. As Jamaica’s economy failed its land and culture declined. Its government followed soon after by not being able to provide for its lesser developed areas and its lack of control over gang …show more content…
Bauxite is a reddish mineral that can be mined in warm moist places, making Jamaica’s tropical climate the ideal place for it to grow. During the years of its initial discovery bauxite was the primary supporter of Jamaica’s economy, it can be found in numerous products such as airplanes, soda cans, make up, and chemicals which is why the demand for it was so high. Bauxite helped with the peak of Jamaica’s economy until the 1980s when the industry first collapsed. There was a decrease in the demand and mining of bauxite, despite the decrease in production bauxite still produced half of the exported income. Jamaica hit another road block when the extraction process of mining bauxite became an environmental problem for the country. For every one ton of bauxite produced there is one ton of residue produced. With Jamaica producing over two million tons of bauxite per year they also produce over two million tons of waste per year. To solve this problem Jamaica came up with the plan to create ponds to dump the waste there. These ponds were built in fertile areas where crops were usually grown, which meant loss of land and crops. The waste filled ponds were expected to dry up within three to five years but because of Jamaica’s high mining and dumping the ponds did not have the chance to dry. Instead the waste sat for years which lead to the leakage in to water supplies held

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