The Elusive Quest for Efficiency in an Inefficient World
Author: Joseph E. Pluta
Publisher:
Published: 2005
Total Pages: 433
ISBN-13: 9781562265298
DOWNLOAD EBOOKRead and Download eBook Full
Author: Joseph E. Pluta
Publisher:
Published: 2005
Total Pages: 433
ISBN-13: 9781562265298
DOWNLOAD EBOOKAuthor: Joseph E. Pluta
Publisher: FriesenPress
Published: 2011-04
Total Pages: 344
ISBN-13: 1770674047
DOWNLOAD EBOOKIn building their profession around carefully selected interpretations of the work of Adam Smith, Alfred Marshall and others, mainstream economists have embraced such concepts as "the invisible hand," "equilibrium," "consumer rationality," "the marginal productivity theory," "the inevitability of diminishing returns," and the fiction of "pure competition." In contrast, "the evolutionary economics" of Thorstein Veblen and Clarence Ayres challenges all of these concept as unproven and capable of telling us little or nothing about the actual operation of the economy. Using the evolutionary framework, Human Progress Amid Resistance to Change argues that all cultures since prehistory have faced two opposing forces: technology, including human knowledge, and institutions rooted in ceremonialism. The former is dynamic, forward looking, accepting of change, cumulative (one discovery builds on another), and the major cause of human progress. The latter is static and consists of all customs, traditions, superstitions, rituals, ceremonies, taboos, and past binding religious beliefs that resist change. The book illustrates in detail how these competing forces have interacted throughout the history of the human race and how mainstream economics fails to grasp the significance of their combined effects.
Author: William R. Easterly
Publisher: MIT Press
Published: 2002-08-02
Total Pages: 443
ISBN-13: 0262260654
DOWNLOAD EBOOKWhy economists' attempts to help poorer countries improve their economic well-being have failed. Since the end of World War II, economists have tried to figure out how poor countries in the tropics could attain standards of living approaching those of countries in Europe and North America. Attempted remedies have included providing foreign aid, investing in machines, fostering education, controlling population growth, and making aid loans as well as forgiving those loans on condition of reforms. None of these solutions has delivered as promised. The problem is not the failure of economics, William Easterly argues, but the failure to apply economic principles to practical policy work. In this book Easterly shows how these solutions all violate the basic principle of economics, that people—private individuals and businesses, government officials, even aid donors—respond to incentives. Easterly first discusses the importance of growth. He then analyzes the development solutions that have failed. Finally, he suggests alternative approaches to the problem. Written in an accessible, at times irreverent, style, Easterly's book combines modern growth theory with anecdotes from his fieldwork for the World Bank.
Author:
Publisher:
Published: 2003
Total Pages: 300
ISBN-13:
DOWNLOAD EBOOKAuthor: Robert P. Taylor
Publisher: World Bank Publications
Published: 2008-02-08
Total Pages: 306
ISBN-13: 0821373056
DOWNLOAD EBOOKWhile energy efficiency projects could partly meet new energy demand more cheaply than new supplies, weak economic institutions in developing and transitional economies impede developing and financing energy efficiency retrofits. This book analyzes these difficulties, suggests a 3-part model for projectizing and financing energy efficiency retrofits, and presents thirteen case studies to illustrate the issues and principles involved.
Author: Jagdish Bhagwati
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Published: 2013-04-09
Total Pages: 255
ISBN-13: 1610392728
DOWNLOAD EBOOKIn its history since Independence, India has seen widely different economic experiments: from Jawharlal Nehru's pragmatism to the rigid state socialism of Indira Gandhi to the brisk liberalization of the 1990s. So which strategy best addresses India's, and by extension the world's, greatest moral challenge: lifting a great number of extremely poor people out of poverty? Bhagwati and Panagariya argue forcefully that only one strategy will help the poor to any significant effect: economic growth, led by markets overseen and encouraged by liberal state policies. Their radical message has huge consequences for economists, development NGOs and anti-poverty campaigners worldwide. There are vital lessons here not only for Southeast Asia, but for Africa, Eastern Europe, and anyone who cares that the effort to eradicate poverty is more than just good intentions. If you want it to work, you need growth. With all that implies.
Author: Partha Dasgupta
Publisher: World Bank Publications
Published: 2000
Total Pages: 438
ISBN-13: 9780821350041
DOWNLOAD EBOOKThis book contains a number of papers presented at a workshop organised by the World Bank in 1997 on the theme of 'Social Capital: Integrating the Economist's and the Sociologist's Perspectives'. The concept of 'social capital' is considered through a number of theoretical and empirical studies which discuss its analytical foundations, as well as institutional and statistical analyses of the concept. It includes the classic 1987 article by the late James Coleman, 'Social Capital in the Creation of Human Capital', which formed the basis for the development of social capital as an organising concept in the social sciences.
Author: Santiago Levy Algazi
Publisher: Inter-American Development Bank
Published: 2018-07-11
Total Pages: 323
ISBN-13: 1597823058
DOWNLOAD EBOOKWhy has an economy that has done so many things right failed to grow fast? Under-Rewarded Efforts traces Mexico’s disappointing growth to flawed microeconomic policies that have suppressed productivity growth and nullified the expected benefits of the country’s reform efforts. Fast growth will not occur doing more of the same or focusing on issues that may be key bottlenecks to productivity growth elsewhere, but not in Mexico. It will only result from inclusive institutions that effectively protect workers against risks, redistribute towards those in need, and simultaneously align entrepreneurs’ and workers’ incentives to raise productivity.
Author: King K. Holmes
Publisher: World Bank Publications
Published: 2017-11-06
Total Pages: 1027
ISBN-13: 1464805253
DOWNLOAD EBOOKInfectious diseases are the leading cause of death globally, particularly among children and young adults. The spread of new pathogens and the threat of antimicrobial resistance pose particular challenges in combating these diseases. Major Infectious Diseases identifies feasible, cost-effective packages of interventions and strategies across delivery platforms to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS, other sexually transmitted infections, tuberculosis, malaria, adult febrile illness, viral hepatitis, and neglected tropical diseases. The volume emphasizes the need to effectively address emerging antimicrobial resistance, strengthen health systems, and increase access to care. The attainable goals are to reduce incidence, develop innovative approaches, and optimize existing tools in resource-constrained settings.
Author: Anatole Boute
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Published: 2019-06-13
Total Pages: 299
ISBN-13: 1108498973
DOWNLOAD EBOOKThe impact of the new 'Great Game' on Central Asia's energy reforms illustrates the interconnection between law, geopolitics and institutions.