For many Westerners, the challenges faced by Less Developed Countries, or LDCs, seem remote until a major event bursts into the news and demands our attention, such as the rise of the Islamic State and the Syrian civil war. The purpose of this book is to enhance our understanding of the political, economic and cultural forces that lay behind these changes. Challenges of the Developing World explores the people, struggles, and triumphs of development in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. Updated to include an examination of the emergence of the Islamic State as the world's most powerful and brutal terrorist organization, the phenomenon of mass emigration from war zones in the developing world, as well as an expanded analysis of the growing role of women in parliaments and congresses in LDCs, this new edition examines the current landscape of life as an emerging nation.