The globalization, rapid technological changes, and economic liberalization have prompted the governments of both developed and developing countries to prioritize on skills development as the dawn to faster growth and economic competitiveness. In the developing countries, financial stability is a problem, and due to this, there are limited resources that can be exploited by the government. These among other challenges like health care which is a high-cost investment leads the government to borrow finances from international lending institutions. The institutions include international monetary fund and the World Bank. These institutions have been of great help to development by lending those finances to carry out their projects. There are, however, terms and conditions that govern the lending the grace period and the return period.
According to Ülgen, (2017) health care, on the other hand, is also connected to lending as the infrastructure involved in hospital construction and equipment used are of very high value and require expertise to handle. All this need enough capital to propel the countries forward. The expertise is grounded in human capital which is a vital necessity for any growing economy. The lack of skills leads to stagnation and misappropriation of funds which are hard to get. Skilled people affect the environment economically and social development.
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The World Bank has announced that they are doubling its lending to the middle-income countries over the next ten years. The move will ensure availability of resources to the fast-developing countries where most of the poorest people in the world live. The International Monetary Fund has also increased it lending per annum to middle-income countries by almost double. Dr. Jim Yong Kim, the American physician leading the world bank said that the end the extreme poverty in developing countries is through helping them to provide more financial resources, more solutions-based knowledge and help more private sector investors. The policies of lending are to be revisited to allow the countries more time maturity time, change some rules, increase fees and increasing borrowing limits for individual countries among others. There is an act to help the developing countries to borrow more pay in considerable amounts and the improvement of the economy and enhancement of skills to propel the country further.
In Kenya, the World Bank in the last five years had funded a project in collaboration with the Kenya Power and Lighting Company and the National Government where they had subsidized the installation of electricity into homes to five thousand Kenyan shilling from thirty thousand Kenyan shillings. The Kenyan Budget in the last half a century, half of it has been funded by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (Ülgen, 2017). The significant infrastructural development and government projects are funded from the international community. This an indication of just how important the international community is essential to the developing countries.
Health is the best indicator of growth. The weaker the health conditions in a country, retardation of the economic and social development is evident. A healthy nation can meet its development goals in time, and with better health care there is more human capital to invest and increased productivity in all sectors of the economy (Aylward, 1998). In Kenya, the health care has dramatically improved with the investment on the better health over the past 15 years. There are more clinics and better services in all the hospitals around the country. More equipment for screening different types of diseases have been bought and spread to the different hospitals around the country. There has been the implementation of free maternity for all women. Free screening for HIV/AIDS and free ARVs for those infected. These have improved the mortality rate and human capital significantly increased. These have led to the rise of small and medium enterprises, the private sectors are thriving and a government tax relief of 50% to all manufacturer in the country. The government has also capitalized on the provision of employment to the youth under different platforms.
Human capital is the biggest limiting factor to development in the developing countries. Investment in skills is far much less costly in the long run than paying the price of poor health, unemployment, low incomes, and social exclusivity which are tied to lack of skills. Skills go beyond professionalism, people with skill look life from different angles and have a more extensive scope and ideas relating to life. Low skilled persons rarely do analyses and focus on future objectives somewhat are weaved in their mind to only think to the level of their knowledge. Low skilled people have poor health practices compared to skilled people and fall ill more often.
Gietzen (2017) states that investment in the human capital is a focus on development and future. The government faces challenges in being able to identify where and who is skilled in the population due to lack of well-kept data on the population. This leads to reduced utilization of the resources, and the development is narrowed. The more mediocre the management of resources the slower the growth.
The investment in healthcare and human capital are the primary development agendas that each developing country should follow. The Kenyan economy has changed with the improvement in the education system and the introduction of digital learning through the lower grade. It has taken a while for the community to embrace the change but a generation of skilled personnel to move the country forward is already underway (Aylward, 1998). The improvement of the sport and games and all extra curriculum activities has helped in the growth of children’s talent and skills. The government initiative for free primary and secondary education has been funded by the international community and is an investment on human capital. This slow but gradual development is undoubtedly going to pay off in due time. Kenya has taken significant strides towards its development and has partnered larger with the developed countries to collaborate and improve the livelihood of its citizens (Gietzen, Brown & Terberger, 2017).
References
Aylward, A. H. (1998). Trends in capital finance in developing countries . Washington, D.C: World Bank.
Demirquc-Kunt, A., Demirquc-Kunt, A., Horvath, B. L., & Huizinga, H. (2017). Foreign Banks and International Transmission of Monetary Policy: Evidence from the Syndicated Loan Market . Washington, D.C: The World Bank.
Gietzen, T., Brown, M., & Terberger, E. (2017). Studies on Small Business Lending in Developing Countries
Ülgen, F. (2017). Financial development, economic crises and emerging market economies . London: Routledge.
In Moahi, K. H., In Bwalya, K. J., & In Sebina, P. M. I. I. M. (2017). Health information systems and the advancement of medical practice in developing countries .
Norris, S. M. P., Forstag, E. H., Altevogt, B. M., Institute of Medicine (U.S.)., Providing Sustainable Mental Health Care in Kenya (Workshop), & Providing Sustainable Mental Health Care in Ghana (Workshop). (2016). Providing sustainable mental and neurological healthcare in Ghana and Kenya: Workshop summary .
Kirk, A. E. (2016). Health, Human Capital, and Behavior Change: Essays in Development Microeconomics. Wolrd Cat. Retrieved from https://www.worldcat.org/title/health-human-capital-and-behavior-change-essays-in-development-microeconomics/oclc/957713841&referer=brief_results
