Search

Begin New Search Topic Economic Growth Publication Year within 5 Years

91. How does democracy cause growth?

Author:
Vanessa Boese-Schlosser and Markus Eberhardt
Publication Date:
07-2023
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Nottingham Interdisciplinary Centre for Economic and Political Research (NICEP)
Abstract:
Recent empirical work has established that ‘democracy causes growth’. In this paper, we determine the underlying institutions which drive this relationship using data from the Varieties of Democracy project. We sketch how incentives and opportunities as well as the distribution of political power shaped by underlying institutions, in combination with the extent of the market, endogenously form an ‘economic blueprint for growth’, which likely differs across countries. We take our model to the data by adopting novel heterogeneous treatment effects estimators, which allow for non-parallel trends and selection into institutional change, and run horse races between underlying institutions. We find that freedom of expression, clean elections, and legislative executive constraints are the foremost drivers of long-run development. Erosion of these institutions, as witnessed recently in many countries, may jeopardise the perpetual growth effect of becoming a liberal democracy we establish for the post-WWII period.
Topic:
Development, Elections, Democracy, and Economic Growth
Political Geography:
Global Focus

92. Could the Future of Work be Green? Two Plot Twists

Author:
Ghada Barsoum
Publication Date:
05-2023
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Cairo Review of Global Affairs
Institution:
School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, American University in Cairo
Abstract:
There are multiple intriguing, often competing, narratives about the future of work. To some, it is digital, virtual, inclusively diverse, and overall promising. To others, it is scary, with machines taking over most of the work we thought we could do. Giant tech companies made much noise a couple of years ago by calling for universal basic income to compensate for anticipated job losses. Even creative writing, what we humans thought we could exclusively do, was threatened by the recent emergence of ChatGPT. One of the less circulated narratives about the future of work is that it can be green. Lone voices about green jobs were heard after the global financial crisis of 2008, with efforts spearheaded by a number of international organizations including the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). More than five years later, in 2013, the ILO offered a definition of green jobs during its Conference of Labour Statisticians, as jobs that are meant to “preserve or restore the environment, be they in traditional sectors such as manufacturing and construction, or in new, emerging green sectors such as renewable energy and energy efficiency”. They also noted that green jobs could help reduce negative environmental impact and lead to sustainable enterprises and economies. Green jobs have been heralded as the promising win-win scenario, reconciling the long competing objectives of economic growth and environmental sustainability.
Topic:
Climate Change, Employment, Economic Growth, Green Jobs, and Future of Work
Political Geography:
Global Focus

93. From economic growth to a wellbeing economy: notes for a feminist foreign policy

Author:
Sarah Cook and Naila Kabeer
Publication Date:
06-2023
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Women's Development Agency (IWDA)
Abstract:
This Issues Paper differs from others produced to date in its conceptual scope and length. Rather than argue priority policy considerations, it provides a resource for feminist foreign policy thinking about the kind of economic, social and environmental outcomes that are consistent with feminist visions and required if people and planet are to survive and thrive. It argues that changing the foundational and flawed measure of Gross Domestic Product can shift understanding of the purpose of economic activity and what is valued in practice to something more feminist, inclusive and sustainable. In considering the history of GDP, critiques, and alternative measures, the authors draw out key features of a feminist approach to a wellbeing economy that offer opportunities to build links to other movements and create political and policy space for change.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, GDP, Economic Growth, and Feminism
Political Geography:
Global Focus

94. Challenges to Submarine Cable Connectivity in Southeast Asia and the Implications for Regional States

Author:
Jeslyn Tan
Publication Date:
07-2023
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Maritime Institute of Malaysia
Abstract:
The fibre optic cables laid on the world’s seafloors have become more indispensable in the digital era when data is viewed as the “new oil”. There are now 552 submarine cables in service or under construction across the globe, spanning about 1.4 million kilometres (km) and transmitting over 95 per cent of global data traffic. Submarine cable connectivity is vital for the development of countries as it underpins their digital communications in finance and commerce, air and sea navigations, defence, as well as diplomacy. These cables are especially important in Southeast Asia which hosts many emerging economies with surging bandwidth demand. Malaysia recorded a peak in internet bandwidth demand in December 2022 at 1.9 terabytes per second (Tbps), indicating the increasing importance of submarine cables to the country’s digital economic growth. However, cable connectivity in Southeast Asia is vulnerable to challenges such as damage caused by human activities at sea and the South China Sea disputes, which will have implications for regional states.
Topic:
Communications, Infrastructure, Economic Growth, and Submarine Cable
Political Geography:
Southeast Asia

95. Fixing Ghana’s Non-Existent Adult Social Care System

Author:
Sarpong Aseidu and Adjei Boakye
Publication Date:
04-2023
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Ghana Center for Democratic Development
Abstract:
Following Ghana’s announcement that an Internaonal Monetary Fund (IMF) program was being sought to help the country go through the current economic downturn, a domesc debt exchange program (DDEP) was announced. As the DDEP progressed it became obvious that many old-age pensioners with bond investments were going to be adversely affected. This led to pickeng by some of those affected at the Ministry of Finance. Many who joined were of the view that should their funds be included, their health will be adversely affected. Though the full details of Ghana’s program with the IMF would not be known for a while, it is accepted that it will aim to address the current macroeconomic imbalances and aempt to promote sustainable economic growth. This will require the implementaon of measures that ensure fiscal and monetary reforms and prudent debt management. Such reforms either reduce subsidies or increase taxes which invariably increase the cost of living. This disproporonately affects people on a fixed income such as the elderly. In a country like Ghana where there isn’t a social safety net for the elderly, and with the cost of chronic disease medicines on the rise this could have an impact on the quality-adjusted health years (QALYs) of this segment of our population.
Topic:
Economic Growth, Aging, Public Health, IMF, and Safety Net
Political Geography:
Africa and Ghana

96. America's payoff from engaging in world markets since 1950 was almost $2.6 trillion in 2022

Author:
Gary Clyde Hufbauer and Megan Hogan
Publication Date:
12-2023
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE)
Abstract:
International trade may not be as popular in the United States as it once was, but this updated PIIE study demonstrates that the payoff to the US economy from globalization has been significant. Gains from trade since 1950, facilitated by vastly improved transportation and communications, added up to $2.6 trillion in 2022, lifting US GDP by 10 percent. These gains averaged $7,800 per person and $19,500 per household in the United States in 2022. Despite these gains, trade barriers were erected under former president Donald Trump and continued under the Biden administration, spurred by concerns over trade-related job loss. These protectionist policies, coupled with the global financial crisis and the COVID pandemic, have slowed globalization. To be sure, trade has inflicted losses on certain US workers. Between 2001 and 2016, more than 300,000 workers annually lost or switched jobs because of imports. In comparison, more than 50 million workers change jobs each year. Americans enjoy large but less visible gains from trade through cheaper and more varied products and increased productivity at firms. Instead of restricting trade, US policymakers should adopt better safety nets for displaced workers and ensure that economic growth is more widely shared.
Topic:
Globalization, Markets, Labor Issues, Economic Growth, and Trade Policy
Political Geography:
North America and United States of America

97. Rare macroeconomic disasters and lost decades in Latin America: The COVID-19 experience in a historical context

Author:
José F. Ursúa
Publication Date:
09-2023
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE)
Abstract:
COVID-19 led to the single largest year-over-year decline in Latin America’s GDP per capita in more than 100 years. Although the region has endured several macroeconomic shocks before, mostly related to financial dislocations, none has been so deep and synchronized. The authors' analysis of the COVID-19 experience for the region and eight economies with available historical data reveals the extent of the damage. Through 2020, four economies suffered “rare disasters” (cumulative contractions by 10 percent or more): Argentina, Mexico, Peru, and Venezuela. Tragically, Venezuela’s macroeconomic collapse matches the largest contraction registered by any country in modern history. In addition, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, and Venezuela, together with the Latin America regional aggregate, are undergoing “lost decades” (prolonged periods of stagnation), which are unlikely to end soon. While Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Uruguay did relatively better with COVID-19, they still suffered significant recessions, and their economic performance has lost steam compared with prior decades. Overall, COVID-19 will cast a long shadow in Latin America even as economic growth rebounds. The shock also offers opportunities for a reset, with the appropriate set of macroeconomic policies, advances on microeconomic reforms, and the strengthening of institutions. Whether this set of policies will materialize in the midst of challenging political contexts remains an open question.
Topic:
History, Economic Growth, Macroeconomics, and COVID-19
Political Geography:
Brazil, South America, and Latin America

98. Will economic growth be sufficient to end global poverty? New projections of the UN Sustainable Development Goals

Author:
Arief Anshory Yusuf, Zuzy Anna, Ahmad Komarulzaman, and Andy Sumner
Publication Date:
10-2023
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
United Nations University
Abstract:
In this paper, we present new projections for a range of global poverty-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), specifically, extreme monetary poverty, undernutrition, stunting, child mortality, maternal mortality, and access to clean water and basic sanitation. Our projections, based on economic growth forecasts, take into account recent global shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the inflation shock. Our findings indicate that economic growth alone will not be sufficient to end global poverty, and the global poverty-related SDGs will not be met by a considerable distance. The implication of this, we argue, is that a stronger focus is needed on inclusive growth (SDG-8), and specifically redistribution with growth at global and national levels. This would mean more emphasis on policies to build productive capacities, and the introduction or expansion of income transfers as well as ensuring public investments are sufficient to meet the SDGs. To this end new international financing needs to be made available through debt relief or other forms of finance to expand developing countries’ fiscal space.
Topic:
Poverty, Sustainable Development Goals, Economic Growth, and Inclusion
Political Geography:
Global Focus

99. Reimagining Africa’s role in revitalizing the global economy

Author:
Amin Mohseni-Cheraghlou
Publication Date:
10-2023
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Atlantic Council
Abstract:
The world economy now finds itself at a critical juncture, facing a series of extraordinary setbacks that have pushed down growth. Reigniting growth requires a unique combination of targeted policies, robust international cooperation, and a renewed look at the global economy, with a particular focus on Africa. Due to its burgeoning and youthful population, abundant natural resources, and a strategic geographical location that can facilitate global trade, Africa can play a major role in—and should be front and center of—any renewed efforts for revitalizing the global economy. A decade-long robust, inclusive, and green growth in Africa will not only move hundreds of millions living in the continent out of poverty but will also accelerate a global rebound and recovery. However, for this to materialize, Africa needs substantial investments in its failing and inadequate physical and social infrastructure. With access to basic infrastructure, alongside efficient institutions as well as its young population, massive natural endowments, and strategic location Africa can seize its economic potential and act as an engine of growth for the global economy for decades to come. Therefore, it is crucial to support Africa to unleash its immense economic potential, through massive and focused investments in the continent’s human capital and its physical and social infrastructure.
Topic:
Development, International Organization, Reform, European Union, Regulation, Finance, Economy, and Economic Growth
Political Geography:
Africa, China, Europe, and United States of America

100. If the EU was a State in the United States: Comparing Economic Growth between EU and US States

Author:
Fredrik Erixon, Oscar Guinea, and Oscar du Roy
Publication Date:
07-2023
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
European Centre for International Political Economy (ECIPE)
Abstract:
This Policy Brief is a warning call about Europe’s poor economic growth and its consequences for prosperity. The long-term trend of Gross Domestic Product per capita is crucially important but not always easy to grasp. While it’s common to compare levels of growth between countries in a single year, the reality is that it is the long-term trend that matters. An economy that grows at 3 percent per year will double in 24 years but an economy that grows at 1 percent per year will double only in 48 years. For a long time now, the average growth rate in mature and developed European economies has been closer to 1 than 3 percent. The EU has had positive economic growth but it has been slow in comparison with other developed economies. If European countries were states in the United States, many of them would belong to the group of poorest countries. In this Policy Brief, we rank GDP per capita in EU countries and US states, and the result is dispiriting. The ranking of GDP per capita in 14 EU member states, which together represented 89 percent of EU GDP, was lower in 2021 than in 2000. For instance, France and Germany were as rich as the 36th and the 31st US states in 2000, but twenty-one years later, French GDP per capita was lower than the 48th poorest US state, Arkansas, while German GDP per capita had fallen to become as prosperous as the 38th US state, Oklahoma. GDP per capita in Central and Eastern European countries have grown considerably but their relatively small size and lower starting point stop them from reverting the trend of relative European economic decline. The result of this economic divergence between EU member states and US states is a growing wedge of GDP per capita between the EU and the US, which in 2021 was as large as 82 percent. If the trend continues, the prosperity gap between the average European and American in 2035 will be as big as between the average European and Indian today. This Policy Brief tells a story about the EU’s unfulfilled economic potential but also offers a ray of hope. If the US states have managed to sustain robust rates of economic growth, the EU member states can do it too. However, to do so the EU must bring back economic growth and competitiveness to the centre of its economic policy. If Europe is to face the challenges presented by climate change and the digital transition, the growing burden of an aging society and defence budgets, higher economic growth is not an option but a necessity.
Topic:
European Union, GDP, and Economic Growth
Political Geography:
Europe, North America, and United States of America