Globalization 2.0

After viewing Thomas Friedman's lecture at MIT on globalization, it got me thinking about what level of globalization Burundi is in right now. For those who haven't seen this lecture, Thomas Friedman defines today's modern world in terms of how globalized we've become. There are three levels thus far: first, Globalization 1.0, meaning that nations are interacting with nations and coming out of their isolationist bubbles. This level of globalization began in 1492 when Columbus touched down in the Americas, sparking a new age of national interaction. Globalization 2.0 began around the 1800s as businesses and corporations began interacting on a global level independent of their individual countries. An example of Globalization 2.0 would be the East India Trading Company which conducted business in multiple different countries. Finally, in the year 2000, we entered the third phase of globalization: Globalization 3.0. In this phase, we're interacting with people at an individual level. This was made possible by advances in technology such as the launching of Netscape.

To begin, I'd say that Burundi definitely qualifies for Globalization 1.0. In today's increasingly globally-unified world, a country would have to go out of their way to defy this first phase of globalization. We as nations have begun to rely more heavily on each other regarding trade, politics, the green campaign, and other issues. But speaking specifically on Burundi, we've been interacting with other nations for quite a while now. We were conquered and colonized by Imperial Germany in the 1880s along with our neighbors Rwanda and part of Tanzania. When Germany was defeated in World War I, the League of Nations gave the previous German territories to Belgium, creating a new Belgian colonial empire called Ruanda-Urundi. We existed beneath this control until July 1, 1962, when we declared independence from Belgium and joined the United Nations two months later. So, I think we've passed phase one of globalization.

But I think Globalization 2.0 is probably where we peak. We're conducting business with other nations - not a great deal, but some - and there are at the very least three large foreign corporations actively at work in Burundi (afribiz.info). The World Bank Group (doingbusiness.org) shows that the potential for doing business in Burundi is up eight points from 2011.

And that's about where we're at. I hesitate to award my country a globalization level any higher than 2.0 because the potential for individual to individual interaction between Burundians and people from different nations is extremely low. Only about 0.03% of the population has access to internet and only about 6% of Burundians live in cities where they might have contact with foreign visitors.

I wonder what I could do to help my adopted country catch up with the rest of our globalized world. I've got one "Developing Dollar" to spend on us, so I better use it right. Any suggestions, folks?