Canuto, Otaviano; Leipziger, Danny M.
Description:
This volume combines the analyses of
leading experts on the various elements affecting economic
growth and the policies required to spur that growth. Ascent
after Decline: Regrowing Global Economies after the Great
Recession identifies the main challenges to the economic
recovery, such as rising debt levels, reduced trade
prospects, and global imbalances, as well as the obstacles
to growth posed by fiscal conundrums and lagging
infrastructure. It also examines the way forward, beginning
with the role of the state and then covering labor markets,
information technology, and innovation. The common thread
throughout the book is the view that economic re-growth will
depend in large measure on smart policy choices and that the
role of government has never been more crucial than at any
time since the great depression. As members of the World
Bank community, these issues are of particular importance to
us, since without a resurrection of strong economic growth
in major economies, the likelihood of rapid economic
development in poorer developing countries is dampened. This
is troubling because we have seen progress in many parts of
the globe in the past decade, including in Africa, and these
gains will be arrested as long as the global economy is in
disarray. Donors will withdraw, investment will retrench,
and prospects will dim. This immiserizing welfare outcome is
to be avoided. The volume is intended to shed light on those
areas of policy that reduce the prospects of a prolonged
period of stress and decline by 'regrowing growth.'