Institutions for high-quality growth: What they are and how to acquire them

This article opens with a discussion of the types of institutions that allow markets to perform adequately. While we can identify in broad terms what these are, there is no unique mapping between markets and the non-market institutions that underpin them. The paper emphasizes the importance of “local knowledge”, and argues that a strategy of institution building must not over-emphasize best-practice “blueprints” at the expense of experimentation. Participatory political systems are the most effective ones for processing and aggregating local knowledge. Democracy is a meta-institution for building good institutions. A range of evidence indicates that participatory democracies enable higher-quality growth. Sakenn pe prie dan sa fason (Everyone can pray as he likes.) —Mauritian folk wisdom This paper was originally prepared for the International Monetary Fund’s Conference on Second-Generation Reforms, Washington, DC, November 8–9, 1999. I thank Ruth Collier, Steve Fish, Mohsin Khan, Saleh Nsouli, conference participants, and an anonymous referee for helpful comments. Dani Rodrik is professor of international political economy at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. He is also the research coordinator for the Group of 24 (G-24), a research associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research, and a research fellow of the Centre for Economic Policy Research (London). He serves as an advisory committee member of the Institute for International Economics, senior advisor of the Overseas Development Council, and advisory committee member of the Economic Research Forum for the Arab Countries, Iran and Turkey. Professor Rodrik’s recent research is concerned with the consequences of international economic integration, the role of conflict-management institutions in determining economic performance, and the political economy of policy reform.     

Structural budget deficits: Concepts and facts

Enormous budget deficits in the American government have been persistent despite continuing economic expansion. The nation is now facing a so called structural budget deficit –hat persists despite the business cycle of the economy. This article sets forth a definition of structural budget deficits, traces the trends of cyclical and structural deficits, analyzes the patterns of revenues and public expenditures, and discusses the implication of deficits in light of federal financial liabilities and obligations.     

坚信中巴友谊畅谈第三世界的全球化应对——专访巴基斯坦友好人士胡马云

编者按:胡马云·果哈尔(Humayun Gauhar),美国剑桥大学社会和政治科学硕士,巴基斯坦领导人侧近人士.2001年任阿尔塔夫·果哈尔基金会主席.     

新形势下如何提高地方外事工作水平之思考

随着经济全球化进程不断加快,世界各国之间的交流与合作日益增多,"科学发展观"的提出和"以人为本"的外交理念的确立,使得各级领导对地方外事工作的要求越来越高,各行各业对外事部门的期望值越来越大,外事工作的任务也越来越繁重.因此,迫切需要用全新的观念、全新的角度去观察、审视和思考地方外事工作.要在继承优良传统的基础上,着眼新情况、采取新举措、总结新经验、探索新路子.