subject: Trust and Development [print this page] Trust and Development Trust and Development
Technology has altered cultures and mindsets. Where before, countries and nations could afford to thrive isolated from one another, now, for a country or nation to live alone is like strangling itself to death. The world has become so connected that there is asameness' of needs and wants. What is good or desirable in one place is being sought after in other places as well. The world has connected itself through transportation and communication, allowing the entry of not just things but ideas as well.
There was a time when nations could afford not to be concerned with other nations. Yet as people acquire greater understanding of how the world grows, by the lessons of economics and ecology, nations cannot afford to follow the old model.
A nation must develop by itself but it needs help to catch up with its more developed neighbors. If it has little or no resources to rely on to develop an industrial or manufacturing base, it could leverage its people to supply its needs for development.
An interesting tack employed by some small nations is developing their financial institutions. Ironic how a small poor nation can, by its financial industry regulations, attract money in such a way as to somehow act as a lender and thus climb its way slowly out of poverty.
Some small countries have resorted to offshore banking, providing moneyed clients all the safety and guarantees for their deposits. By attracting a significant number of these depositors, these banks in small nations can accumulate enough to offer offshore loans. Countries impatient and desperate for funds for their socially sensitive projects often turn to these offshore banking banks as a means to bridge any delays of funding from other government sponsored development banks.
A lot can be learned from these countries using offshore banking banks as a means of spurring economic development. For a small country to be able to offer offshore loans, it needs to become trustworthy enough to attract people who will entrust their money to the country's system.
It is amazing how the step from being trusted can lead to being able to give an offshore loan that will return as a country's rise from poverty.
