Economic Development and Transition: Thought, Strategy, and Viability
Cambridge University Press, 2/12/2009
EAN 9780521514521, ISBN10: 0521514525
Hardcover, 184 pages, 22.9 x 15.2 x 1.4 cm
Language: English
In Economic Development and Transition, renowned development economist Justin Yifu Lin argues that economic performance in developing countries depends largely on government strategy. If the government plays a facilitating role, enabling firms to exploit the economy's comparative advantages, its economy will develop successfully. However, governments in most developing countries attempt to promote industries that go against their comparative advantages by creating various kinds of distortion to protect nonviable firms in priority industries. Failing to recognize the original intention of many distortions, most governments in transition economies attempt to eliminate those distortions without addressing firms' viability problems, causing economic performance to deteriorate in their transition process. Governments in successful transition economies adopt a pragmatic dual-track approach that encourages firms to enter sectors that were suppressed previously and gives necessary support to firms in priority industries before their viability issue is addressed.
List of figures
List of tables
1. Development, transition and divergence
2. The search for a fundamental and changeable cause of prosperity
3. Aspiration and social thought of modernization
4. Development strategy, viability and performance
5. Viability and strategies of transition
6. Development strategy and development and transition performances
empirical analysis
7. Why are East Asian economies so special? Are there any general lessons to be learned from East Asian development and transition experiences?
8. Toward a right development and transition strategy
Appendix I. Development strategy and economic institutions in developing countries
Appendix II. Data description
References
Index.
'Development and transition pose extremely difficult challenges. In these masterly Lectures, Justin Lin, now the World Bank's Chief Economist, brings to these complex subjects a profound understanding of the problems they raise and also unusual insights from his first-hand experience with China's spectacular performance. The Lectures are a tour de force.' Jagdish Bhagwati, Columbia University