State the main criteria used to classify a country as 'developed' or 'developing'.

Question

Accepted Answer

Countries are broadly classified as developed or developing using several complementary criteria; no single indicator is treated as sufficient on its own:

| Criterion | Developed economies | Developing economies |
|---|---|---|
| Per capita income | High | Low to middle |
| HDI | Very High / High | Medium / Low |
| Sectoral share of output/employment | Industry and services dominate; agriculture's share is small | Agriculture still employs a large workforce share |
| Literacy and education | Near-universal | Improving, often incomplete |
| Life expectancy and healthcare | High, well-developed | Lower, still expanding |
| Technology and capital | Capital-intensive, advanced | Relatively labour-intensive |
| Urbanisation | Highly urbanised | Rapidly urbanising, still substantially rural | …

Q.State the main criteria used to classify a country as 'developed' or 'developing'.

Concept understanding — Developed vs Developing Economies

Criterion	Developed economies	Developing economies
Per capita income	High	Low to middle
HDI	Very High / High	Medium / Low
Sectoral share of output/employment	Industry and services dominate; agriculture's share is small	Agriculture still employs a large workforce share
Literacy and education	Near-universal	Improving, often incomplete
Life expectancy and healthcare	High, well-developed	Lower, still expanding
Technology and capital	Capital-intensive, advanced	Relatively labour-intensive
Urbanisation	Highly urbanised	Rapidly urbanising, still substantially rural

Q.State the main criteria used to classify a country as 'developed' or 'developing'.

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