Economic Resources Notes, Quizzes & Revision

A resource is anything needed to accomplish a task or satisfy a need or a want.

Economic resources are the inputs used to produce goods and services for satisfaction of human needs and wants.

Economic resources are those resources that require human effort to produce goods and services.

They include

1. Soil
2. Minerals
3. Machines
4. Vehicles
5. Buildings
6. Tools

Characteristics of economic resources

• Can change ownership

Economic resources can change ownership from one person to another through sale or donations

• Have utility

Utility means usefulness.

Economic resources can be used to produce other goods and services

• Scarce in supply

Economic resources are not available in sufficient quantities

• Have monetary value

They have a value that can be exchanges for ownership

• Have alternative use

Economic resources may be put into different uses

e.g car owner may rent it for business

• Can be complementary

Different economic resources may be consumed together such as a car with petrol

• Can be combined

Different economic resources are combined to produced the final product

For example a wooden chair is made using nails, timber and vanish

Types of economic resources

• Human made/artificial resources
  

Are made by people to be used in producing goods and services

Examples: machines, factories, vehicles

These things aid the production of goods and services and make work easier

• Human resources

Are people who have the skills required in producing goods and services

Examples; drivers, technicians, salespeople, farmers, carpenters, bakers

• Natural resources

Are things that are naturally found in the environment and are important in the production of goods and resources.

Examples; water, land, forests, minerals

• The distribution of economic resources is uneven. This means that different regions or places may have different types of resources.
• Example certain regions have rivers while others do not

Sustainable ways of using economic resources in Kenya

Suitable use of economic resources means using resources in a way that ensures we meet our own needs without affecting the ability of future generations to meet their needs.Aims  at ensuring that future generation can be able to utilise economic resources to produce the products and services they need.Some of the ways to sustainably use economic resources include

1. Planting trees after cutting down other tress
2. Treating industrial wastes before disposing them to water bodies or releasing them int the air
3. Protecting soil from the erosion to improve farm produce
4. Recycling plastics and other harmful materials instead of dumping them anyhow.
5. Tools, instruments or machines should be properly maintained.
6. Employees or laborers should be treated well and paid fairly. This ensures their availability for future projects
7. Economic resources are important and therefore should be used responsibly.

importance of economic resources to the community

• They are used to create goods and services which satisfy human needs and wants
• They are a means of development because they are the key to the improved economic growth of a country
• Economic resources create employment opportunities for the people who utilise them
• Economic resources create wealth and eradicate poverty