Welcome to the Growth Blog

The Growth Blog is a forum for you - the policy maker, the academic, the student, and the interested citizen of the world - to agree, disagree, or simply to engage current practitioners on policies and issues critical to development. This platform was inspired by the series of meetings that the Commission on Growth and Development held around the world over the course of the last two years. Of the many lessons that emerged in the deliberations, the one that stands out is that inclusive growth requires inclusive thinking, and inclusive discussion.

 

David Weil

Health and Growth: A Heretical View?

Submitted by David Weil on Tue, 06/16/2009 - 11:23.
Conventional wisdom in the development community includes the following two ideas:
1)       There is good evidence that health improvements in poor countries lead to significant increases in GDP per capita.
 
2)      Idea (1) is an important consideration for policy making.
I would like to propose a heretical take on these questions:
1)      Available data and theory do not support the conclusion that health improvements in poor countries lead to significant increases in GDP per capita.
 
2)      Idea (1) is not relevant for policy making.

Endemic Diseases and African Economic Growth: Challenges and Policy Responses

Submitted by Administrator on Mon, 06/01/2009 - 10:25.

 

In a paper prepared for the African Economic Research Consortium entitled, Endemic Diseases and African Economic Growth, David Weil estimates the quantitative effects of disease on different aspects of the economy in Africa. Weil points out that there already exists abundant information on how being poor leads to worse health outcomes. However, this study evaluates the reverse causality - how disease impacts different economic sectors in society. Weil contends that this information is crucial for policy makers in determining how much good will result from some course of action, and wil thus allow different policy options to be compared. Read more here (.pdf).

 

 

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