>I know this will never be popular opinion,but as a citizen of a poor, developing country with widespread corruption, I sometimes have to wonder: is democracy really the best model for poor nations that don't have the foundations to foster it?
I actually think you have a very valid concern. As Churchill once said "Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others." ( I know it isn't Churchill who said it first, but let not derail the topic )
As someone who has lived in Representative Democracy, Direct Democracy, and Authoritarian countries, My only conclusion is, none of the above form of government matters as much. What is much more fundamental, in every form of government is well educated, and well informed people. They need to be taught to think independently, and critically, to make values of things, to make a judgement, and (much) more importantly, to learn from the mistakes if they did make a wrong judgement. Education is the key and possibly the only key to political and society progress. Once we have that, any form of Government will work, as ultimately the power of Government comes from People, even Authoritarian.
That is of course ignoring capitalism sneaking through, where human greed are maximised. Where Education isn't about teaching the basics of thinking and values, but skills set that you are required to get a job.