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countries, however, industrial development is restricted to a few consumer-goods industries that cater to relatively small domestic markets.
29. The developing countries' share in world production of iron and steel rose from 3.6 per cent in 1955 to 17.3 per cent in 1984, when four countries – Brazil, China, India, and the Republic of Korea – produced more than 10 million tons of steel each, as much as in many medium-sized industrialized countries.[1] At the same time that this industry is contracting in many developed countries, it is expected to expand by 38 million tons between 1982 and 1990 in the developing world. Latin America is projected to account for 41 per cent of this rise, Southeast Asia for 36 per cent, the Middle East for 20 per cent, and Africa for 1.3 per cent.[2]
30. Many developing countries still depend heavily on their exports of minerals and other commodities, mostly in unprocessed or only intermediately processed forms. In the case of several major minerals such as aluminium and nickel, a few transnational corporations control the whole industry, from mining through final processing.[3] Some countries have been moderately successful in increasing the share of refined products in their exports. Yet most of these 'manufactured' goods are processed further in the industrial country that imports them. Thus in 1980. only 39 per cent of all Third World exports of manufactured goods were ready for final use, while 43 per cent of its total experts were unprocessed. [4] This ratio should improve as developing nations move into the further stages of processing. These improvements should be speeded up.
31. The expected growth in basic industries foreshadow rapid increases in pollution and resource degradation unless developing countries take great care to control pollution and waste, to increase recycling and reuse, and to minimize hazardous wastes. These countries do not have the resources to industrialize now and repair the damage later: nor will they have the time, given the rapid pace of technological progress. They can profit from the improvements in resource and environmental management being achieved in industrialized countries, and so avoid the need for expensive clean-ups. Such technologies can also help them reduce ultimate costs and stretch scarce resources. And they can learn from the mistakes of developed countries.
32. Economies of scale are no longer always the primary consideration. New technologies in communications, information, and process control allow the establishment of small-scale, decentralized, widely dispersed industries. thus reducing levels of pollution and other impacts on the local environment. There may, however, be trade-offs to be made: small-scale raw material processing. for example, is often labour-intensive and widely dispersed but intensive in the use of energy. Such dispersed industries could relieve big cities of some of their population and pollution pressures. They could provide non-farming jobs in the countryside, produce consume: goods that cater to local markets. and help spread environmentally sound technologies.
- ↑ N. Namiki, 'International Redeployment of Pollution-Intensive Industries and the Role of Multinational Corporations'. prepared for WCED. 1986.
- ↑ OECD. Developments in Steel Making Capacity in Non-OECD Market Economy Countries (Paris: 1985).
- ↑ Namiki, op. cit.
- ↑ UNIDO, Industry in a Changing World (New York: 1983).
