1. Sriram1 GEOG 310 Middle America Sriram Khé Associate Professor of Geography

2. MIDDLE AMERICA

3. Sriram3 INTRODUCTION TO MIDDLE AMERICA THE REALM –MEXICO, CENTRAL AMERICA, CARIBBEAN ISLANDS MAJOR GEOGRAPHIC QUALITIES –FRAGMENTED - PHYSICALLY AND POLITICALLY –DIVERSE CULTURALLY –POVERTY IS ENDEMIC

4. Sriram4 REGIONS OF MIDDLE AMERICA Mexico Central America Greater Antilles Lesser Antilles

5. Sriram5 MIDDLE AMERICA

6. Sriram6 Poverty Home to the poorest countries of the Americas: –Haiti –Honduras –Nicaragua

7. Sriram7 PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY LAND BRIDGE ARCHIPELAGO –GREATER AND LESSER ANTILLES NATURAL HAZARDS –EARTHQUAKES –VOLCANOES –HURRICANES I wonder why?

8. Sriram8 WORLD TECTONIC PLATES

9. Sriram9 DISTRIBUTION OF EARTHQUAKES & VOLCANOES

10. Sriram10 WORLD HURRICANE TRACKS Hurricane Mitch devastated Central America in October 1998

11. Sriram11 CULTURE HEARTH SOURCE AREAS from which radiated ideas, innovations, and ideologies that changed the world beyond. Mesoamerica Hearths Aztecs Mayans

12. Sriram12 MESOAMERICA CULTURE HEARTHS – MAYA CIVILIZATION CLASSIC PERIOD 200-900 AD HONDURAS, GUATEMALA, BELIZE, YUCATAN PENINSULA THEOCRATIC STRUCTURE – AZTEC CIVILIZATION 1300 AD VALLEY OF MEXICO

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14. Sriram14 SPAIN FRANCE BRITAIN COLONIAL HERITAGE

15. Sriram15 THE LEGACY OF COLONIALISM Land was appropriated - colonial commercial interests Lands devoted to food crops for local consumption were converted to cash cropping for export Land Alienation induces: –Famine –Poverty –Migration –Little agricultural diversity

16. Sriram16 COLONIAL SPHERES

17. Sriram17 MAINLAND – RIMLAND DISTINCTION

18. Sriram18 MAINLAND/RIMLAND FRAMEWORK MAINLAND –EURO-INDIAN INFLUENCE –GREATER ISOLATION –HACIENDA PREVAILED RIMLAND –EURO-AFRICAN INFLUENCE –HIGH ACCESSIBILITY –PLANTATION ECONOMY

19. Sriram19 MAINLAND vs RIMLAND Locationgreater isolationgreater accessibility Climatealtitudinaltropical zonation Physiographymountainsislands CultureEuro/IndianAfrican-European MAINLANDRIMLAND

20. Sriram20 HACIENDA vs PLANTATION HACIENDA –SPANISH INSTITUTION –NOT EFFICIENT BUT SOCIAL PRESTIGE –WORKERS LIVED ON THE LAND PLANTATION –NORTHERN EUROPEAN ORIGINS –EXPORT ORIENTED MONOCROPS –IMPORTED CAPITAL AND SKILLS –SEASONAL LABOR –EFFICIENCY IS KEY

21. Sriram21 AGRICULTURAL INSTITUTIONS Plantation Production for exportProduction for export Single cash cropSingle cash crop Seasonal EmploymentSeasonal Employment Profit motive $$$Profit motive $$$ “factory in the field” efficiency“factory in the field” efficiency

23. Natural Resources A major oil Producer: About 3.5 million barrels per day Saudia Arabia produces about 9 mil bpd

24. Sriram24 Assembly plants that pioneered the migration of industries in the 1970s Today –>4,000 maquiladoras –>1 million employees MAQUILADORAS

25. Sriram25 Modern industrial plants Assemble imported, duty-free components/raw materials Export the finished products Mostly foreign-owned (U.S., Japan) 80% of goods reexported to U.S. Tariffs limited to value added during assembly MAQUILADORAS

26. Sriram26 Maquiladora products MAQUILADORAS Electronic equipment Electric appliances Auto parts Clothing Furniture

27. Sriram27 ADVANTAGES –Mexico gains jobs. –Foreign owners benefit from cheaper labor costs. EFFECTS –Regional development –Development of an international growth corridor between Monterrey and Dallas - Fort Worth MAQUILADORAS

28. Sriram28 MAQUILADORAS Tijuana Nogales Ciudad Juarez Matamoros Reynosa Monterrey Chihuahua

29. Sriram29 GDP PER CAPITA ALONG THE US-MEXICAN BORDER

30. Sriram30 NAFTA Effective 1 January 1994 Established a trade agreement between Mexico, Canada and the US, which: –Reduced and regulated trade tariffs, barriers, and quotas between members –Standardized finance & service exchanges

31. Sriram31 NAFTA How has Mexico benefited from NAFTA?

32. Sriram32 MEXICO AND NAFTA Foremost, it promises a higher standard of living. NAFTA creates more jobs for Mexicans as US companies begin to invest more heavily in the Mexican market. Mexican exporters increase their sales to the US and Canada. Is that the entire story?

33. Sriram33 U.S. TRADE WITH CANADA & MEXICO Canada remains as the United States’ largest export market. Since 1977, Mexico has moved into second place (displacing Japan). 85% of all Mexican exports now go to the United States. 75% of Mexico’s imports originate in the United States.

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35. Sriram35 ECONOMIC TRENDS (Central America & the Caribbean) Agriculture Industry Services –Tourism Environmental Issues –Deforestation

36. Sriram36 El Salvador –Agriculture accounts for 24% of GDP and 40% of the labor force and contributes to 60% of exports. –Economic losses because of guerrilla sabotage total $2 billion since 1979. Honduras –Agriculture accounts for more than 25% of GDP, employs 62% of the labor force, and produces two-thirds of exports. –Economic loss because of natural disaster PRIMARY SECTOR DEPENDENCE

37. Sriram37 HIPC Honduras and Nicaragua are on the HIPC list –Heavily indebted poor countries –The Initiative is designed to reduce debts to sustainable levels for poor countries that pursue economic and social policy reforms, –Used specifically in cases where traditional debt relief mechanisms will not be enough to help countries exit from the rescheduling process.

38. Sriram38 The weight of debt Nicaragua's external debt currently stands at 6.7 billion dollars. - 25% of the Nicaraguan budget is spent on debt payments –Contrast to … 14% on health care –11% on education Almost half the population falling below the poverty line. High levels of infant mortality and maternal mortality, and a high level of infectious and parasitic diseases. Malnutrition is widespread with around 20 per cent of children under five being chronically malnourished or stunted

39. Sriram39 PRIMARY SECTOR DEPENDENCE Dominican Republic (49% Agriculture) –Sugarcane, coffee, cotton, cocoa, and tobacco Jamaica (22.5% Agriculture) –Sugar, bananas, and rum (Hurricane Gilbert -1988) Cuba (20% Agriculture) –Sugar, tobacco, citrus, and coffee

40. Sriram40 ALTITUDINAL ZONATION Middle & South America’s Vertical Climate Zones

41. Sriram41 ALTITUDINAL ZONATION Sea Level Sea Level 2500’ 750 m TIERRA CALIENTE (Hot Land) Bananas, Cocoa, Sugar, Rice Middle & South America’s Vertical Climate Zones

42. Sriram42 6,000’ 1800 m ALTITUDINAL ZONATION Sea Level 2000’ 600 m Sea Level TIERRA TEMPLADA (Temperate Land) Coffee, Rice, Corn, Sugar

43. Sriram43 ALTITUDINAL ZONATION Sea Level 6,000’ 2000’ 2,000 m 600 m Sea Level 12,000’ 3,600 m TIERRA FRIA (Cold Land) Corn, Wheat, Potato

44. Sriram44 THE TOURISM OPTION Antigua and Barbuda –Direct contribution of 13% to GDP and affects growth in other sectors The Bahamas –Tourism alone provides 50% of GDP and directly or indirectly employs 40% of the population. Cuba –Growing industry

45. Sriram45 ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS Tropical Deforestation 3.5 million acres of woodland in Central America disappear each year!

46. Sriram46 CAUSES OF TROPICAL DEFORESTATION Clearing of rural lands to accommodate meat production and export Rapid logging of tropical woodlands to meet global demands for new housing, paper, and furniture Population growth: forests are cut to provide crop-raising space and firewood

47. Sriram47 Internal Wars Nicaragua –Sandinistas v. Contras Panama –Remember Manuel Noriega? Honduras –Drawn into conflicts in Nicaragua and El Salvador El Salvador –12-year civil war ends in 1992 Guatemala –A peace agreement in 1996 ends a 36-year civil war Costa Rica? –The only stable country –Best standards of living in the region Intel comes to town …