Rebecca NerheimDecember 9, 2013GEOG Research PaperWhy has economic development been so difficult in the Global South? As a senior at the University of Arizona with a double major in Economics and Geography, economic development in the Global South is something I would like to pursue as a career after graduation. It is therefore necessary to understand the problems associated with it and why the different approaches have not been as successful as the agencies hoped. First, I will define economic development and its main actors. Although there are many complex factors that cause economic development problems, I will focus on and explain how ignorance of local circumstances, large debts, business problems, and lack of consideration for certain people have made development difficult economy in the countries of the South. What is economic development? According to the Cambridge Dictionary, economic development is “the process by which an economy grows or changes and becomes more advanced, especially when economic and social conditions improve (“English”, n.d.). The International Economic Development Council lists goals to describe the term, such as wealth and job creation. It also states that economic development includes policies and programs aimed at assisting businesses, providing infrastructure and achieving economic goals (“IEDC”, nd). This term seems to encompass all kinds of economic growth in a local, regional or global context. There are several key players in economic development in the countries of the South. The World Trade Organization, founded in 1995, includes 144 countries. The objective of the WTO is to enable trade to “proceed smoothly, freely, fairly and predictably” (Peet, 2003). The WTO is directly linked to economic development. He claims that he takes advantage of the international division of labor to increase incomes and reduce the cost of living for all, argues