Should Developing Countries be Allowed to Develop Fossil Fuels?

While energy is clearly the path to national development, given their role in the climate crisis, should developing countries be allowed to develop them?

It is beyond a doubt that the countries that make up the developed world achieved that status through being the first to unbind Prometheus and harness fossil fuels on a massive scale in the Industrial Revolution. The countries of the developing world, many of whom were locked in the grip of colonialism, were confined to remaining export economies for their respective metropolitan centers — and thus stuck in a state of economic stagnation.

While millions of dollars have been poured into international development by governments and NGOs, the desire to see these countries achieve the status of First World nations is increasingly running up against the climate crisis and the need to shift away from fossil fuels and toward green energy. But that takes time and money — things that developing countries don’t have on their quest to achieve developed status. Indeed, while China has pledged to make itself carbon neutral by 2060, the islands of the Pacific will more likely resemble the lost continent of Atlantis by then.

So, should developing countries be allowed to run their development on the backs of fossil fuels?

To Read the Pro Side of This Debate, Go Here.

The pro-development party states that countries should be allowed to access fossil fuels in order to develop economically, as disallowing them from doing so would simply widen the already-wide chasm between the developing and developed economic worlds. Given that developed countries contribute the lion’s share of greenhouse gases, punishing developing countries for this would be fundamentally unjust. At the same time, however, the intention is for oil and gas to serve as a bridge between polluting fuels often used for cooking, including wood, kerosene, and charcoal, until access to renewable energy is attainable.

To Read the Con Side of This Debate, Go Here.

The con-development party does not dispute the notions that climate change needs to be tackled and an energy transition from fossil fuels to renewables is important to that process. Indeed, it comes off as condescending and paternalistic for the developed nations of the world to block further development. However, the transition is undoubtedly more complicated than the pro-party states. For instance, many developing countries are heavily indebted and lack both the funds and access to capital markets that are needed to make the shift from oil to less-polluting natural gas or make a broader commitment to solar and wind. Developed nations could help by putting their money where their proverbial mouths are and providing the necessary funds, which they are not doing in amounts to make an appreciable difference.

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