The machinery of policy making in LDCs

At Nairobi, during this year’s annual conference of the International Monetary Fund, the Fund’s President, Mr Robert S. McNamara, called upon the LDCs to treat a more equitable distribution of personal incomes as a priority aim. However, the LDCs’ machinery for making policy decisions makes it very difficult to pursue such an aim.     

New aspects of US economic policy towards LDCs

President Carter assumed power in Washington in January, 1977. Since that time, many aspects of US foreign economic policy, especially those involving the less developed countries (LDCs), have been reviewed and some new approaches have been introduced. Foreign and concepts have been adjusted and the US has actively participated in the North-South Dialogue; it has also become increasingly involved in international economic including UN conferences.     

New aspects of US economic policy towards LDCs

President Carter assumed power in Washington in January, 1977. Since that time, many aspects of US foreign economic policy, especially those involving the less developed countries (LDCs), have been reviewed and some new approaches have been introduced. Foreign and concepts have been adjusted and the US has actively participated in the North-South Dialogue; it has also become increasingly involved in international economic including UN conferences.

     

The nature of urbanisation in LDCs

The urbanisation experience of the less developed countries shows distinct differences to that of the industrialised countries. What are the reasons for this and what are the implications for development policy?     

The role of cooperatives in LDCs

Socio-economic conditions in LCDs generally are featuring a more or less naked dualism. The question has to be asked whether cooperatives could not be used as tools for dismantling this dualism.     

The effects of structural adjustment programmes

Many developing countries are trying to improve their economic conditions by means of structural adjustment programmes. The following article points out the weaknesses of such programmes and draws conclusions about the support that should be given to economic reform in developing countries in the future.     

The Netherlands adjustment policy with a development cooperation dimension

All developed market economies have, during the last two decades, suffered serious structural difficulties in their economies, due, in part, to increasing LDC competitiveness in the production of manufactured goods. Most developed countries have reacted by adopting measures aimed at restructuring their economies to take account of these trends. Only the Dutch, however, have included a development cooperation dimension into part of their general restructuring programme.     

Unified structural adjustment policy in Europe?

Low growth and high unemployment have induced the European Union (EU) to outline an economic programme in which long-term effective growth and structural policy measures play a central role. Simultaneously, the German government adopted an “action programme aiming at more growth and employment”, in which the efforts on the EU level play hardly any role. Is international coordination of growth and structural adjustment policy legitimated from an economic point of view or is competition between national policies more efficient?     

The position of LDCs in foreign trade

Recent negotiations about selling prices for crude oil have reflected an economic controversy between developing countries and the industrialised nations of the West. That, in this particular case, the demands raised by developing countries had to be accepted almost entirely was due to their strong position in the international market for oil. However, such strength In the market is not at all typical for most developing countries.     

The EEC tariff preferences for LDCs

The Council of Ministers of the European CommunIties decided on March 30, 1971, to put into effect on July 1, 1971, a system of general tariff preferences favouring the exports of manufactures and semimanufactures from developing countries. By taking this decision the European Communities have reaffirmed their leading role among the western industrialised countries.     

The role of the agricultural sector in LDCs

The growth strategies pursued by the vast majority of developing countries considerably neglect the agricultural sector. The following article discusses the main determinant factors for this discrimination, namely the shortcomings of macroeconomic as well as sectoral and project policies.     

Regional development in LDCs

Regional policy and planning in developing countries has the task to surmount spatial disequilibria. Various theories of regional development try to show a way out of economic disparities; but these theories are not always accepted by political institutions.     

Transfer of technology in LDCs

The author discusses the controversial problems connected with the transfer of highly sophisticated technologies to LDCs. In his opinion this transfer and adaptation of technologies is necessary and advantageous, but depends on the development of a national technological capacity of a developing country as a prerequisite.     

Growth problems in wealthy LDCs

Large revenues drawn from oil offer wide scope for a highly active development policy, especially to the oil producing states round the Arab-Persian Gulf (which is to be understood as a geographical, not a political term). But even countries In such a favoured situation experience bottlenecks, and also the direction In which their economic and social structures of the future may move is full of pitfalls.     

Commercial policy and dynamic adjustment under monopolistic competition

We explore liberalization of trade in differentiated commodities using a model featuring monopolistic competition and capital accumulation. We identify a mechanism of ‘cumulative causation’ in investment and an associated externality leading to under-accumulation. We provide long-run analytical results for a stylized core model and offer a quantitative treatment of transitional and sectoral issues using a disaggregate computational model. The aggregate welfare gains from unilateral liberalization are about three times larger than in the competitive case with constant returns, and they exhibit a characteristic pattern of generational incidence. Small export subsidies may be self-financing.     

Chances of tourism promotion in LDCs

The author tries to draw up a balance sheet between, on the one hand, the economic benefits flowing to LDCs from foreign tourism and, on the other hand, the social and cultural harm done to LDCs by tourism. Concluding, he defines a number of conditions under which touristic projects may be suitable for promotion through foreign aid.     

External adjustment in oil exporters: The role of fiscal policy and the exchange rate

After the decline in oil prices, many oil exporters face the need to improve their external balances. Special characteristics of oil exporters make the exchange rate an ineffective instrument for this purpose and give fiscal policy a sizeable role. These conclusions are supported by regression analysis of the determinants of the current account balance and of the trade balance. The results show little or no relationship with the exchange rate and, especially for the less diversified oil exporters, a strong relationship with the fiscal balance or government spending.     

我国非公平经济增长的表现及其政策破解

20世纪90年代以来,一方面中国经济高速增长,另一方面东西部、城乡贫富之间的差距进一步扩大.从宏观政策层面来审视,国家政策的非中立性和制度资源配置不均是导致我国非公平经济增长的根本原因.鉴于此,可以采取一定的措施,允许个别地方制定相应的政策来弥补中央重大决策在保持"中立"方面的不足,运用地方性政策加以补充.同时,通过完善公共财政体系和税收调节收入分配等措施来实现公平的经济增长,最终实现可持续发展.