IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v10y2018i4p1286-d142508.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Infrastructures as Catalysts: Precipitating Uneven Patterns of Development from Large-Scale Infrastructure Investments

Author

Listed:
  • Crelis Rammelt

    (Institute for Interdisciplinary Studies, Faculty of Science, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam 1090 GE, The Netherlands)

Abstract

While infrastructure investments in developing regions may bring about aggregate benefits, the distribution of those benefits cannot be ignored. The present paper examines such distributional effects based on two illustrations: rural roads in Ethiopia and flood control systems in Bangladesh. In both cases, the infrastructures promote particular development patterns towards market-economic transformations and integration. We liken the introduction of these infrastructures to the addition of a catalyst in a chemical reaction. Rural roads, for example, catalyse existing flows of agricultural labour, while flood control catalyses agricultural productivity. Taking the analogy a step further, the effects of a catalyst are known to vary due to the presence of so-called inhibitors and promoters. Applying this to the two cases, the paper reveals that, among other factors, the ownership (or lack thereof) of modes of transportation in Ethiopia and land resources in Bangladesh represent significant promoters (or inhibitors) that can help to explain the unequal distribution of benefits. This question is by no means new; past technical assistance programmes were already fiercely criticized for exacerbating inequalities. Today, commercial and political interests are again intensifying infrastructural investments in developing regions with profound impacts on local economies and livelihoods. Revisiting the question of distribution is, therefore, as relevant as ever.

Suggested Citation

  • Crelis Rammelt, 2018. "Infrastructures as Catalysts: Precipitating Uneven Patterns of Development from Large-Scale Infrastructure Investments," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(4), pages 1-15, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:10:y:2018:i:4:p:1286-:d:142508
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/10/4/1286/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/10/4/1286/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Kristian Behrens, 2011. "International Integration And Regional Inequalities: How Important Is National Infrastructure?," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 79(5), pages 952-971, September.
    2. Kanbur, Ravi & Venables, Anthony J. (ed.), 2005. "Spatial Inequality and Development," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780199278633.
    3. Bernard M. Hoekman & Keith E. Maskus & Kamal Saggi, 2023. "Transfer of Technology to Developing Countries: Unilateral and Multilateral Policy Options," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Kamal Saggi (ed.), Technology Transfer, Foreign Direct Investment, and the Protection of Intellectual Property in the Global Economy, chapter 5, pages 127-142, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    4. Rahim Quazi, 2001. "Strategic Water Resources Planning: A Case Study of Bangladesh," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 15(3), pages 165-186, June.
    5. Klaus Deininger & Daniel Ayalew Ali & Tekie Alemu, 2008. "Assessing the Functioning of Land Rental Markets in Ethiopia," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 57(1), pages 67-100, October.
    6. John Pender & Berhanu Gebremedhin, 2008. "Determinants of Agricultural and Land Management Practices and Impacts on Crop Production and Household Income in the Highlands of Tigray, Ethiopia," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 17(3), pages 395-450, June.
    7. Facundo Alvaredo & Thomas Piketty & Emmanuel Saez & Lucas Chancel & Gabriel Zucman, 2018. "World Inequality Report 2018," PSE-Ecole d'économie de Paris (Postprint) halshs-01885458, HAL.
    8. Stefan Dercon & Daniel O. Gilligan & John Hoddinott & Tassew Woldehanna, 2009. "The Impact of Agricultural Extension and Roads on Poverty and Consumption Growth in Fifteen Ethiopian Villages," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 91(4), pages 1007-1021.
    9. Muradian, Roldan & Martinez-Alier, Joan, 2001. "Trade and the environment: from a 'Southern' perspective," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(2), pages 281-297, February.
    10. David Tilman & Kenneth G. Cassman & Pamela A. Matson & Rosamond Naylor & Stephen Polasky, 2002. "Agricultural sustainability and intensive production practices," Nature, Nature, vol. 418(6898), pages 671-677, August.
    11. Benno J. Ndulu, 2006. "Infrastructure, Regional Integration and Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa: Dealing with the disadvantages of Geography and Sovereign Fragmentation," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 15(2), pages 212-244, December.
    12. Camelia Dewan & Aditi Mukherji & Marie-Charlotte Buisson, 2015. "Evolution of water management in coastal Bangladesh: from temporary earthen embankments to depoliticized community-managed polders," Water International, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 40(3), pages 401-416, May.
    13. Unknown, 2005. "Forward," 2005 Conference: Slovenia in the EU - Challenges for Agriculture, Food Science and Rural Affairs, November 10-11, 2005, Moravske Toplice, Slovenia 183804, Slovenian Association of Agricultural Economists (DAES).
    14. Rammelt, Crelis F. & Leung, Maggi W.H., 2017. "Tracing the Causal Loops Through Local Perceptions of Rural Road Impacts in Ethiopia," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 1-14.
    15. Hadley, Craig & Linzer, Drew A. & Belachew, Tefera & Mariam, Abebe Gebre & Tessema, Fasil & Lindstrom, David, 2011. "Household capacities, vulnerabilities and food insecurity: Shifts in food insecurity in urban and rural Ethiopia during the 2008 food crisis," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 73(10), pages 1534-1542.
    16. Wibke Crewett & Benedikt Korf, 2008. "Ethiopia: Reforming Land Tenure," Review of African Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 35(116), pages 203-220, June.
    17. Gebrehaweria Gebregziabher & Stein T. Holden, 2011. "Distress rentals and the land rental market as a safety net: contract choice evidence from Tigray, Ethiopia," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 42, pages 45-60, November.
    18. Crelis F. Rammelt & Maarten Van Schie & Fredu Nega Tegabu & Maggi Leung, 2017. "Vaguely Right or Exactly Wrong: Measuring the (Spatial) Distribution of Land Resources, Income and Wealth in Rural Ethiopia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(6), pages 1-19, June.
    19. Deborah Fahy Bryceson & Annabel Bradbury & Trevor Bradbury, 2008. "Roads to Poverty Reduction? Exploring Rural Roads' Impact on Mobility in Africa and Asia," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 26(4), pages 459-482, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Annelies (E.B.) Zoomers, 2018. "Development at the Crossroads of Capital Flows and Migration: Leaving No One Behind?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(12), pages 1-10, December.
    2. Reyes-García, Victoria & Fernández-Llamazares, Álvaro & Bauchet, Jonathan & Godoy, Ricardo, 2020. "Variety of indigenous peoples’ opinions of large infrastructure projects: The TIPNIS road in the Bolivian Amazon," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 127(C).
    3. Ambaw Desalegn & Nigussie Solomon, 2022. "The Interrelationship among Institutional Capacity, Infrastructure Governance and Equity, and Nation-Building Process in Ethiopia," Public Organization Review, Springer, vol. 22(3), pages 627-647, September.
    4. Sri Maryati & Tommy Firman & An Nisaa’ Siti Humaira & Yovita Tisarda Febriani, 2020. "Benefit Distribution of Community-Based Infrastructure: Agricultural Roads in Indonesia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(5), pages 1-18, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Rammelt, Crelis F. & Leung, Maggi W.H., 2017. "Tracing the Causal Loops Through Local Perceptions of Rural Road Impacts in Ethiopia," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 1-14.
    2. Crelis F. Rammelt & Maarten Van Schie & Fredu Nega Tegabu & Maggi Leung, 2017. "Vaguely Right or Exactly Wrong: Measuring the (Spatial) Distribution of Land Resources, Income and Wealth in Rural Ethiopia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(6), pages 1-19, June.
    3. Moon, Wanki, 2011. "Is agriculture compatible with free trade?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 71(C), pages 13-24.
    4. Clemens Greiner & David Greven & Britta Klagge, 2021. "Roads to Change: Livelihoods, Land Disputes, and Anticipation of Future Developments in Rural Kenya," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 33(4), pages 1044-1068, August.
    5. Takada, Jun & Shuto, Hisato, 2023. "Causal linkages between land reform and factor demand under tenure insecurity: Evidence from Amhara Region, Ethiopia," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 128(C).
    6. Lisa Biber-Freudenberger & Amit Kumar Basukala & Martin Bruckner & Jan Börner, 2018. "Sustainability Performance of National Bio-Economies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(8), pages 1-20, August.
    7. Shin Takada & So Morikawa & Rika Idei & Hironori Kato, 2021. "Impacts of improvements in rural roads on household income through the enhancement of market accessibility in rural areas of Cambodia," Transportation, Springer, vol. 48(5), pages 2857-2881, October.
    8. Abay, Kibrom A. & Chamberlin, Jordan & Berhane, Guush, 2021. "Are land rental markets responding to rising population pressures and land scarcity in sub-Saharan Africa?," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    9. Headey, Derek & Dereje, Mekdim & Taffesse, Alemayehu Seyoum, 2014. "Land constraints and agricultural intensification in Ethiopia: A village-level analysis of high-potential areas," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 129-141.
    10. Barbier, Edward B., 2016. "Is green growth relevant for poor economies?," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 178-191.
    11. Alexander Urrego-Mesa & Juan Infante-Amate & Enric Tello, 2018. "Pastures and Cash Crops: Biomass Flows in the Socio-Metabolic Transition of Twentieth-Century Colombian Agriculture," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(1), pages 1-28, December.
    12. Simon R. Bush & Peter Oosterveer, 2015. "Vertically Differentiating Environmental Standards: The Case of the Marine Stewardship Council," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(2), pages 1-23, February.
    13. Nilsson, Pia & Backman, Mikaela & Bjerke, Lina & Maniriho, Aristide, 2019. "One cow per poor family: Effects on the growth of consumption and crop production," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 1-12.
    14. Boone, Catherine & Simson, Rebecca, 2019. "Regional inequalities in African political economy: theory, conceptualization and measurement, and political effects," Economic History Working Papers 100861, London School of Economics and Political Science, Department of Economic History.
    15. Ben Brunckhorst, 2020. "Rural Mobility and Climate Vulnerability: Evidence from the 2015 Drought in Ethiopia," CSAE Working Paper Series 2020-17, Centre for the Study of African Economies, University of Oxford.
    16. Barbier, Edward B., 2012. "Natural capital, ecological scarcity and rural poverty," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6232, The World Bank.
    17. Yang Zhou & Chunyang Tong & Yongsheng Wang, 2022. "Road construction, economic growth, and poverty alleviation in China," Growth and Change, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(3), pages 1306-1332, September.
    18. Ellinor Isgren & Yann Clough & Alice Murage & Elina Andersson, 2023. "Are agricultural extension systems ready to scale up ecological intensification in East Africa? A literature review with particular attention to the Push-Pull Technology (PPT)," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 15(5), pages 1399-1420, October.
    19. Teshome Beyene Leta & Arega Bazezew Berlie & Mehrete Belay Ferede, 2021. "Effects of the current land tenure on augmenting household farmland access in South East Ethiopia," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 8(1), pages 1-11, December.
    20. Hirte, Georg & Lessmann, Christian & Seidel, André, 2020. "International trade, geographic heterogeneity and interregional inequality," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 127(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:10:y:2018:i:4:p:1286-:d:142508. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.