Welcome back!
Andy Serwer writes today on the Fortune magazine website an article entitled “Can Jordan Build on its Relative Success?” Even the title is a give-away of modest expectations: “relative success”? The article lists some of Jordan’s undeniable achievements over the past seven or eight years: free trade agreements with the U.S. and the European Union that have caused exports to soar, some measure of macroeconomic stability, continued GDP growth even in the current economic crisis, improvements in education and health care, and reform and liberalization of several key areas of the economy. Having spent quite a lot of time working in Jordan, I agree with Mr. Serwer’s assessment of Jordan as the most secure and pleasant place to live in the neighborhood – in which he includes Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Israel – though Beirut’s nightlife and the topless sunbathers in Tel Aviv outshine any of Jordan’s more sedate attractions. But it is easy to overstate the case. [click to continue…]
Tagged as:
bubble,
developing countries,
Economic Reform,
Growth,
infrastructure,
Jordan,
labor force,
Middle East,
stability,
work ethic
The last several weeks have been busy. I am not even over jet lag from my two-week trip to Indonesia and Thailand, from which I returned last Sunday, and I leave tomorrow morning for Senegal. Naturally, I would rather think about my contribution to the world’s economy than about my ever-expanding carbon footprint. At least I am not traveling around the world to attend conferences on climate change, which would be a touch too absurd even for my tastes.
I spoke to quite a few business and government people in both Indonesia and Thailand, and it seems clear to me that Asia will lead the world out of recession. Thailand has been suffering a political crisis for several years now, marked by a military coup, rioting, the takeover by demonstrators of the country’s main airport, and the abrupt dismissal of two Prime Ministers, but its economy seems to sail on, unperturbed. The nation’s factories are humming, building cars and auto parts, microprocessors, and all kinds of industrial equipment and consumer goods, and potential investors are lining up at the gates, determined not to miss the next big thing. [click to continue…]
Tagged as:
Crisis,
developing countries,
economic growth,
emerging markets,
Travel
I am currently doing a fair bit of work analyzing and writing about public-private partnerships and their contribution to economic development. Partnerships are active in a wide range of economic development initiatives all over the globe, from health to education to small farmer productivity, and usually involve some level of private sector contribution to a project designed or supported by a public or multilateral entity. These are not the same kinds of infrastructure partnerships that blend huge public and private investment to build roads, dams, ports, and power stations. Instead, they tend to be smaller scale, are often community based, and sometimes go by the name of “social enterprise” or “sustainable business.” The idea is that private companies or foundations (sometimes connected with a company, or perhaps set up by billionaire, semi-retired tech entrepreneurs) invest in projects that promise to help impoverished people and communities, but are aligned with and sometimes can even further a company’s core business. In the midst of the current economic crisis, many people have assumed that this kind of investment, often considered merely a type of corporate philanthropy (wrongly so, in my view), will dry up. I think, though, that there are several compelling reasons why companies and foundations may find it in their enlightened self-interest to continue to make such investments, direct or in-kind, in spite of the current climate. [click to continue…]
Tagged as:
Crisis,
developing countries,
foreign direct investment,
foreign investment,
public private partnership
I have been in Minsk, the capital of Belarus, the past few days, working on a World Bank Group assignment to help improve the investment climate. Minsk is a European-looking city with wide boulevards, grand neoclassical buildings, and a fairly prosperous air, most people fairly well-fed and well-dressed. The streets are clean and free of crime, and there are none of the gangs of drunken youth or ominous clusters of mafiosi up to no good that I remember from previous trips to other parts of the former Soviet Union, A fairly normal place, you’d think.
But Belarus has a serious image problem. [click to continue…]
Tagged as:
Belarus,
developing countries,
Eastern Europe,
economic growth,
Economic Reform,
emerging markets,
Trade
Once upon a time there was something called the “Washington Consensus,” a set of economic policy prescriptions championed by the World Bank and the IMF and endorsed by all of the large industrialized countries. The main pillars of the consensus included:
- Fiscal discipline;
- Reducing government spending on subsidies for businesses, farmers, and consumers in favor of increased spending on things like education, health care, and infrastructure;
- Tax reform – broadening the tax base and lowering tax rates;
- A market-based approach to interest and foreign exchange rates;
- Liberalizing trade by getting rid of licensing requirements and lowering import duties;
- Liberalization of inward foreign direct investment;
- Privatization of state enterprises;
- Getting rid of regulations that impede market entry or restrict competition, except those that protect the environment and public health and safety ; and,
- Reinforcing property rights. [click to continue…]
Tagged as:
developing countries,
economic growth,
Economic Reform,
emerging markets,
foreign direct investment,
foreign investment,
liberalization,
privatization,
protectionism,
stimulus package,
washington consensus
