Солтүстік және Оңтүстік: Елдердің экономикалық жіктелуі

Terms that denote two groups of countries

[[File:UNCTADclassificationofeconomies. png|thumb|420x420px|Economic classification of the world's countries by the UNCTAD: the Global North (i. e., developed countries) is highlighted in blue and the Global South (i. e., developing countries and least developed countries) is highlighted in red. Most of the Global South's countries are commonly identified as lacking in their standard of living, which includes having lower incomes, high levels of poverty, high population growth rates, inadequate housing, limited educational opportunities, and deficient health systems, among other issues. Additionally, these countries' cities are characterized by their poor infrastructure. Opposite to the Global South is the Global North, which the UNCTAD describes as broadly comprising Northern America and Europe, Israel, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand. More specifically, the Global North consists of the world's developed countries, whereas the Global South consists of the world's developing countries and least developed countries. The Global South classification, as used by governmental and developmental organizations, was first introduced as a more open and value free alternative to “Third World”, and likewise potentially “valuing” terms such as developed and developing. Countries of the Global South have also been described as being newly industrialized or in the process of industrializing, many of them are current or former subjects of colonialism. Generally, the Global North and the Global South correlate with the Western world and the Eastern world, respectively. The two groups are often defined in terms of their differing levels of wealth, economic development, income inequality, and strength of democracy, as well as by their political freedom and economic freedom, as defined by a variety of freedom indices. Countries of the Global North tend to be wealthier, less unequal, more democratic, more peaceful, and capable of exporting technologically advanced manufactured products, among other characteristics. In contrast, countries of the Global South tend to be poorer, more unequal, less democratic, less peaceful, and heavily dependent on their largely agrarian based economic primary sectors. Some scholars have suggested that the inequality gap between the Global North and the Global South has been narrowing due to the effects of globalization. Other scholars have disputed this position, suggesting that the Global South has instead become poorer vis à vis the Global North in this same timeframe. It has become popular in light of the geographical migration of manufacturing and production activity from the Global North to the Global South,

The Global South is generally seen as home to China, India, Indonesia, Brazil and Pakistan, which, along with Nigeria and Mexico, are the largest Southern states in terms of land area and population. The term Global North is often used interchangeably with developed countries. Likewise, the term Global South with developing countries.|name="agri"

Global South "emerged in part to aid countries in the southern hemisphere to work in collaboration on political, economic, social, environmental, cultural, and technical issues." This is called South–South cooperation (SSC), a "political and economical term that refers to the long term goal of pursuing world economic changes that mutually benefit countries in the Global South and lead to greater solidarity among the disadvantaged in the world system." Countries using this model of South–South cooperation see it as a "mutually beneficial relationship that spreads knowledge, skills, expertise and resources to address their development challenges such as high population pressure, poverty, hunger, disease, environmental deterioration, conflict and natural disasters."

The Dictionary of Human Geography defines development as "processes of social change or [a change] to class and state projects to transform national economies". Economic development is a measure of progress in a specific economy. It refers to advancements in technology, a transition from an economy based largely on agriculture to one based on industry and an improvement in living standards. Being categorized as part of the "North" implies development as opposed to belonging to the "South", which implies a lack thereof. According to N. Oluwafemi Mimiko, the South lacks the right technology, it is politically unstable, its economies are divided, and its foreign exchange earnings depend on primary product exports to the North, along with the fluctuation of prices. The low level of control it exercises over imports and exports condemns the South to conform to the 'imperialist' system. The South's lack of development and the high level of development of the North deepen the inequality between them and leave the South a source of raw material for the developed countries. Furthermore, in Regionalism Across the North South Divide: State Strategies and Globalization, Jean Grugel stated that the three factors that direct the economic development of states in the Global south are "élite behaviour within and between nation states, integration and cooperation within 'geographic' areas, and the resulting position of states and regions within the global world market and related political economic hierarchy."

The development disparity between the North and the South has sometimes been explained in historical terms. Dependency theory looks back on the patterns of colonial relations which persisted between the North and South and emphasizes how colonized territories tended to be impoverished by those relations. The Structuralists defined dependency as the inability of a nation's economy to complete the cycle of capital accumulation without reliance on an outside economy. More specifically, peripheral nations were perceived as primary resource exporters reliant on core economies for manufactured goods. Meneleo Litonjua describes the reasoning behind distinctive problems of dependency theory as "the basic context of poverty and underdevelopment of Third World/Global South countries was not their traditionalism, but the dominance dependence relationship between rich and poor, powerful and weak counties." Modernization theory "sought to remake the Global South in the image and likeliness of the First World/Global North." After modernization attempts took place, theorists started to question the effects through post development perspectives. Postdevelopment theorists try to explain that not all developing countries need to be following Western ways but instead should create their own development plans. This means that "societies at the local level should be allowed to pursue their own development path as they perceive it without the influences of global capital and other modern choices, and thus a rejection of the entire paradigm from Eurocentric model and the advocation of new ways of thinking about the non Western societies." The goals of postdevelopment was to reject development rather than reform by choosing to embrace non Western ways.

With its development, many scholars preferred using the Global South over its predecessors, such as "developing countries" and "Third World". Leigh Anne Duck, co editor of Global South, argued that the term is better suited at resisting "hegemonic forces that threaten the autonomy and development of these countries." The Global South / Global North distinction has been preferred to the older developed / developing dichotomy as it does not imply a hierarchy. The popularity of the term "marks a shift from a central focus on development and cultural difference" and recognizes the importance of geopolitical relations. Critics of this usage often argue that it is a vague blanket term. Others have argued that the term, its usage, and its subsequent consequences mainly benefit those from the upper classes of countries within the Global South; In this political usage, the Global South is employed in a more geographically fluid way, referring to "spaces and peoples negatively impacted by contemporary capitalist globalization." In other words, "there are economic Souths in the geographic North and Norths in the geographic South." The geographical boundaries of the Global South remain a source of debate. Some scholars agree that the term is not a "static concept". As some countries in the South experience rapid development, there is evidence that those states are developing high levels of South–South aid. Brazil, in particular, has been noted for its high levels of aid ($1 billion annually—ahead of many traditional donors) and the ability to use its own experiences to provide high levels of expertise and knowledge transfer. The United Nations has also established its role in diminishing the divide between North and South through the Millennium Development Goals, all of which were to be achieved by 2015. These goals seek to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, achieve global universal education and healthcare, promote gender equality and empower women, reduce child mortality, improve maternal health, combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases, ensure environmental sustainability, and develop a global partnership for development. These were replaced in 2015 by 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs, set in 2015 by the United Nations General Assembly and intended to be achieved by 2030, are part of a UN Resolution called "The 2030 Agenda".

The global digital divide is often characterized as corresponding to the north–south divide; however, Internet use, and especially broadband access, is now soaring in Asia compared with other continents. This phenomenon is partially explained by the ability of many countries in Asia to leapfrog older Internet technology and infrastructure, coupled with booming economies which allow vastly more people to get online.

Mass media has often compared the Global South to the North, and is thought to be an aid in the divide. Western media tends to present a generalized view of developing countries through biased media coverage, mass media outlets tend to focus disproportionately on poverty and other negative imagery. This common coverage has created a dominant stereotype of developing countries as: "the 'South' is characterized by socioeconomic and political backwardness, measured against Western values and standards." Mass media has also played a role in what information the people in developing countries receive. The news often covers developed countries and creates an imbalance of information flow.