早稲田国際教養AO Economic Liberalism -partly rewritten-

解答のポイント

主題：　経済の自由化は先進国だけでなく途上国も発展させる。　本文該当箇所　第１段落 it has been an extraordinary success which holds great promise for the future. 並外れた成功であり将来を大いに保障する。第３段落 countries in Asia have actually been narrowing the gap substantially.アジア諸国は実は貧富の差が相当狭まっている。 第４段落 What they have had in common, though has been a policy of opening their economies to trade and to foreign capital.しかしこれらの国に共通するのは貿易と海外資本に対する自国経済開放政策である。

 

参考　Protectionism and Free Trade

1) Free trade

Definition: a system of international trade in which there are no restrictions or taxes on imports and exports. (Oxford Eng-Eng) Under a free trade policy, prices are a reflection of true supply and demand, and are the sole determinant of resource allocation. Free trade differs from other forms of trade policy where the allocation of goods and services among trading countries are determined by artificial prices that may or may not reflect the true nature of supply and demand. (Wikipedia)

2) Protectionism

Definition: the principle or practice of protecting a country’s own industry by taxing foreign goods. (Oxford Eng-Eng) In recent years, it has become closely aligned with anti-globalization. The term is mostly used in the context of economics, where protectionism refers to policies or doctrines which protect businesses and workers within a country by restricting or regulating trade with foreign nations. (Wikipedia)

 

Note:

1)     In short, you like free trade when you want to export your products and sell a lot of them or when you want to import materials or products cheap, while you like protectionism when you are a producer whose products are not selling well within your country due to cheap imports.

2)     Free trade is different from fair trade. Free trade is done between countries while fair trade is done between companies. Free trade usually punish producers of in developing countries while fair trade often help them. Here is a definition of fair trade:

 

Fair trade is an organized social movement that aims to help producers in developing countries to make better trading conditions and promote sustainability. It advocates the payment of a higher price to exporters as well as higher social and environmental standards. It focuses in particular on exports from developing countries to developed countries, most notably handicrafts, coffee, cocoa, sugar, tea, bananas, honey, cotton, wine, fresh fruit, chocolate, flowers, and gold. (Wikipedia)

 

問１　グローバル化は貧富の差を拡大させると主張している人が多数います。この文章の筆者がこの見解に反対する理由は何でしょうか？

考え方  第3・4段落の要旨（アジア経済は自由化後発展）をまとめる。注 丸写しせず自分の言葉に変換。表現の一部を使うのはOK

解答のポイント例　Asian countries adopted free trade → got richer on the whole and they make up more than half the world population → Free trade (globalization) has narrowed the gap between the rich and the poor　（自由貿易の採用により、世界人口の半分以上を占めるアジア諸国全体が豊かになり貧富の差は狭まった。従ってグローバル化により貧富の差はむしろ狭まっていると言える。）

 

問２　本文に述べられていないグローバル化の悪い点は何ですか？

考え方　経済の自由化と、（グローバル化を批判する人の言う）貧富の差拡大との関係を考えて答える。　注 経済のグローバル化関連であること。（何も書かないよりは何か書いた方が良いが、文化などについて書くよりは本文の主題に直接関連する問題を取り上げる方が理解力及び知識と問題意識をアピールできる。）

解答のポイント例　

☆unfair trade ― Material exporters stay relatively poor or become poorer because raw materials are cheaper than the products, which are produced in factories in other countries and sold in rich countries, and also because many corporations try to cut costs to make the products competitive in the market.（不公平貿易 ― 原料輸出国は製品化しないので利益が低い＋コスト削減の影響）

☆sweatshops ― Foreign companies take advantage of cheap work force in poor countries, and in some cases, people, including children, are employed under bad conditions for pitifully low wages, which violates human rights.（搾取する工場 ― 外国企業は貧しい国の安価な労働力を利用するが、中には子供も含めて劣悪な条件下哀れなほど低い賃金で雇う場合があり、これは人権侵害である。）

☆weakening small local businesses and farmers ― Cheaper imports destroy local industry.（地元中小企業や農業従事者の弱体化 ― 安価な輸入品が地元産業を破壊する）

☆outsourcing ― Outsourcing jobs to other countries causes higher unemployment rates in rich countries because of close-down of factories and low hiring rates（外部委託 ― 外国への仕事の委託が工場閉鎖・雇用率低下による先進国の失業率上昇をまねく）

 

問３　グローバル化はあなた自身の生活にどのような影響を及ぼしましたか？

考え方　　グローバル化と自分自身の国・生活との関連を考えて見る。注グローバル化と日常生活との関連が明示されていること。

解答のポイント例　

☆Japan is an export-driven economy. Thanks to the globalization, it has become one of the richest countries in the world by exporting its products, and we enjoyed the riches, but Japan was also the hardest hit in the world financial crisis in 2008 despite the relatively unaffected financial sector because people all over the world stopped buying our luxurious products such as cars and electronics. Subsequently, the unemployment rate shot up, and our lives are precarious now. （輸出中心経済による生活の浮き沈み）

☆Most of the foods we eat are imported or made using imported products such as flour and cattle feed. We can enjoy varieties of cheap imports but at the same time feel uneasy of the low self-sufficiency rate (40%). （豊かな消費生活の楽しみと低い自給率の不安）

☆Influence of other cultures, especially American culture, has made our lives more colorful and changed our values in good ways. Our society is much freer than before and it is good in general. On the other hand, we are losing our indigenous cultures such as traditional craftsmanship, customs, and values (e.g. traditional textile making techniques, lifetime employment system, egalitarianism, etc.).  （社会の自由化と伝統の喪失）

 

 

☆Answer Keys for Extra Questions:

1) To meet the needs of the extremely poor, we need only less than ( one ) % of income of the rich world. 極貧の人々を救うのに必要なのは、豊かな国々の収入のたった（1 ）％未満。

2) Why should we prioritize helping women rather than men in poor countries?

a. Most of the poor, the illiterate, and HIV/AIDS patients are women. Therefore, helping poor women will directly reduce the number of the poor.

b. Women use their extra money for the benefit of their family such as houses to shelter themselves from elements and education of their children, so that money spent to improve the lives of poor women will also improve the lives of the next generation.

3) Is fair trade a panacea in helping poor countries?

Rich countries use both protectionism and free trade, taxing imports to protect their own industries and selling their products to other countries, almost tax-free. If poor countries could do the same, there would be no need for fair trade. Therefore, fair trade is not a silver bullet but a Band-Aid by which a portion of producers are given fair wages and better working conditions. Supporting them to raise their productivity and to be competitive in the world market would be a panacea.