Edexcel IGCSE Geography

Revision Notes

4.2.1 Impacts of Economic Sectors

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Case Study: Sector Shift in the UK

  • The UK is in the post-industrial stage of the Clark-Fisher model
  • It was the first country to experience the Industrial Revolution
  • In the 1800s jobs in primary economic activities were rapidly declining reaching 15% in 1900
  • In 1900 most people (over 60%) worked in secondary economic activities and tertiary economic activities were also steadily increasing
  • In the 1950s tertiary economic activities overtook secondary economic activities as the main employment sector
  • In 2021 over 70% of people in the UK are employed in tertiary economic activities
  • These changes have both positive and negative impacts

Percentage -employment-in-economic-sectors---uk

% Employment in Economic Sectors 2020 - UK

Positive Impacts

  • Deindustrialisation has led to improvements in the environment and decreased levels of pollution
  • The UK has developed expertise in secondary and tertiary economic activities which are in demand around the world
  • London is the second most important financial centre in the world after New York

Negative Impacts

  • Deindustrialisation led to high numbers of job losses particularly in the north of the UK
  • Job losses in secondary industries led to large areas of deprivation, especially in inner cities such as Liverpool and Leeds
  • Increasing numbers of transnational corporations (TNCs) have moved their factories and offices to emerging and developing countries

Case Study: Sector Shift in China

  • China is in the industrial stage of the Clark-Fisher model
  • In 1950 over 80% of the population were employed in primary economic activities - mainly agriculture
  • In 1978 China opened up to trade with the rest of the world and invested heavily in manufacturing
  • By 2005 primary economic sector employment had dropped below 50% and most people were employed in secondary and tertiary economic activities
  • In 2020 tertiary economic activity employment was increasingly important

Percentage-employment-in-economic-sectors-china

% Employment in Economic Sectors 2020- China 

Positive Impacts

  • Improved incomes and higher standard of living
  • More investment in education and health services
  • Increased investment by transnational corporations (TNCs)
  • Investment in roads, airports, ports and other infrastructure

Negative Impacts

  • Increasing gap between regions as some area's economies grow more rapidly
  • Increased gap between rich and poor, particularly in the gap between wealthier urban residents and poorer rural residents
  • Air, water and noise pollution all increased 
  • Increased reliance on fossil fuels to supply energy which makes China one of the world's largest COemitters

Case Study: Sector Shift in Kenya

  • Kenya is in the pre-industrial stage of the Clark-Fisher model
  • Over 50% of the population are currently employed in agriculture, this has decreased from over 60% in 2010
  • There is very little secondary economic activity due to a lack of resources and infrastructure
  • Tertiary economic activities have rapidly increased  - much of this is related to tourism

Percentage-employment-in-economic-sectors-Kenya

% Employment in Economic Sectors 2020 - Kenya

Positive Impacts

  • Improved incomes and higher standard of living
  • More investment in education and health
  • Increased investment by transnational corporations (TNCs)
  • Investment in roads, airports, ports and other infrastructure

Negative Impacts

  • Increased rural-urban migration which leads to the development of informal settlements
  • Increased gap between rich and poor, particularly in gap between wealthier urban residents and poorer rural residents
  • Much of the profits from commercial farming and tourism go to TNCs rather than local people
  • Jobs in the tertiary economic sector are often low-paid jobs in tourism
  • Increased tourism can have negative impacts on the environment and animal habitats

Worked example

Study figure 1a which shows Indonesia's GDP by sector

pie-charts-for-indonesia

Proportion of Indonesia's GDP by Economic Sector 2020

Suggest one factor which has influenced the proportions of Indonesia's GDP (2)

  • Answer:
    • Tertiary and quaternary is the largest sector (1) because they have a well-educated labour force (1)
    • 27% of manufacturing (secondary) is the highest (1) because Turkey is developing its manufacturing economy as part of its industrialisation (1)
    • Primary, e.g. agriculture is nearly 1⁄4 of the GDP (1) because the economy is still reliant on the primary sector (1)
    • Globalisation has allowed the country to received more foreign investment (1) causing the growth of the tertiary and quaternary sectors (1)
    • Tertiary is the largest sector (1) due to the growth of air travel and increase in tourism (1)

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Bridgette

Author: Bridgette

After graduating with a degree in Geography, Bridgette completed a PGCE over 25 years ago. She later gained an MA Learning, Technology and Education from the University of Nottingham focussing on online learning. At a time when the study of geography has never been more important, Bridgette is passionate about creating content which supports students in achieving their potential in geography and builds their confidence.