IELTS Model Essay | Economic Growth Has Helped To Increase Living Standards All Over The World

The following essay question was asked on an IELTS test recently held.

Economic growth has helped to improve standards of living all over the world.  However, some research shows that people in developing countries are happier with this trend than people in developed countries.  Explain why you think this is.

Band 9 IELTS essay sample

There is no denying the fact that economic growth has improved the standard of living all over the world. However, growth in global economy may mean different things to different people.

For people in the developing world it means better opportunities for personal and professional growth. More and more people in developing countries such as India and China now earn more than enough to lead comfortable lives. Now they have high disposable incomes that make it possible for them to lead luxurious lives. They can now buy the latest gadgets, travel to the most exotic places on earth and own luxury apartments and cars. Their children now get world class education and healthcare. None of these would have been possible if the economy wasn’t growing. Needless to say, for people in the developing world growth in the economy is a positive development.

Now let us see what global economic growth means to people in the developed world. Majority of people in the developed world already lead comfortable lives. They already possess disposable income and the recent growth in the global economy hasn’t really done anything to further improve their standard of living. On the other hand, they now face stiff competition from their peers in the developing countries. Their market share has started eroding. They are no longer the most sought after candidates for jobs even in their own countries. Worse still, more and more jobs now get outsourced to the developing world, where the cost of labour is low compared to that in the West.  As a result of this people in the developed world are now losing their jobs. Needless to say, they aren’t all that happy with this sudden spurt in global economy.

The facts given above should explain why researchers feel that people in the developing countries are happier with the growth in global economy than the people in the developed world.

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