Review: "Series of well-written articles analyzes elements that comprise successful stabilization programs, as well as impact of deregulation, privatization, tax reform, and trade liberalization. Discusses reform efforts in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Israel, Mexico, Peru, and Turkey"--Handbook of Latin American Studies, v. 57. http://www.loc.gov/hlas/
Developing countries commonly adopt reforms to improve their governments yet they usually fail to produce more functional and effective governments. Andrews argues that reforms often fail to make governments better because they are introduced as signals to gain short-term support. These signals introduce unrealistic best practices that do not fit developing country contexts and are not considered relevant by implementing agents. The result is a set of new forms that do not function. However, there are realistic solutions emerging from institutional reforms in some developing countries. Lessons from these experiences suggest that reform limits, although challenging to adopt, can be overcome by focusing change on problem solving through an incremental process that involves multiple agents.
These case studies provide valuable insights into the difficulty of establishing answers to the fundamental question of why nations grow at different rates, with inequitable patterns of wealth and income distribution.
Across the OECD, governments are seeking to undertake structural reforms to strengthen their economic growth. Based on a broad set of indicators of structural policies and performance, Going for Growth 2007 takes stock of the recent progress made in implementing policy reforms and identifies, for each OECD country, five policy priorities to lift growth. It calls for reforms in areas such as product and labour market regulation, taxation, pension, income support, health and education to boost labour productivity and employment. The set of internationally comparable indicators provided here enables countries to assess their economic performance and structural policies in a broad range of areas. The publication puts together the knowledge accumulated at the OECD in these various fields. In addition, this issue contains four analytical chapters covering: The employment effects of policies and institutions Product market regulation and productivity convergence Policies to strengthen competition in product markets Factors shaping the implementation of structural reform
This book aims to explain the secret to China’s rapid growth over the last 40 years from the viewpoint of a firsthand witness. Zheng Xinli was enrolled as a graduate student of economics 40 years ago, at a time when very few Chinese people could enroll in higher-level education, let alone graduate school. Since 1978, he has been engaged in the study of macroeconomic theory and economic policy. He has worked with the economic group of the Research Section of the Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, the State Information Center, and the Policy Research Office of the State Planning Commission, as well as other organizations. His work serves to help Chinese leaders in making economic decisions. In 2013, Zheng Xinli appeared on the list of China’s Top Ten Economists. With the addition of several up-to-date articles, this book is mainly a condensed version of a 16-volume collection of essays selected from among the more-than-500 articles published by Zheng between 1981 and 2016. Addressing some of the major issues in China, namely, Reform and Development, Development Patterns, Macro Regulation, Balanced Urban and Rural Development, Innovation, and Industry Revitalization, the book, as Zheng himself puts it, visualizes the birth process of different policies and measures which have catered to the different stages of reform. As an insider, and also partly as a designer and architect, Zheng Xinli provides readers with a view of China’s reform from the top.
The book features an analysis of teacher reform in Indonesia, which entailed a doubling of teacher salaries upon certification. It describes the political economy context in which the reform was developed and implemented, and analyzes the impact of the reform on teacher knowledge, skills, and student outcomes.
"Anne O. Krueger has assembled and deftly summarized an excellent set of papers on the major issues in economic reform in developing countries at the turn of the century."--Stanley Fischer, International Monetary Fund The papers and commentary collected in this volume discuss vital contemporary thinking on economic policy reform--in particular, the difficulties that leave so much of the world mired in poverty. Distinguished contributors address issues ranging from education and privatization to exchange rates and telecommunications reform, providing an excellent overview of the current situation and the possible paths into the future.
This is a comprehensive study of China's economic reforms, from their beginnings at the end of 1978 through the completion of many of the initial reform measures during 1993. The features of Chinese reform that differ from the former USSR are highlighted.
