Chosen theme: Cross-Country Economic Growth Performance. Explore how nations accelerate incomes, reduce poverty, and navigate shocks through institutions, technology, and human capital. Join our comparative journey, grounded in evidence and stories that feel real. Subscribe to receive fresh, data-rich insights and add your voice to the conversation.
Capital deepening and infrastructure that multiplies effort
From reliable power to ports that cut shipping times, capital accumulation raises productivity by giving workers better tools. Yet without maintenance and transparent procurement, returns fade fast. Tell us how infrastructure investments in your region have changed business costs or expanded opportunities for smaller firms.
Human capital: education, health, and skills that travel
Countries advance when schools teach adaptable skills and health systems protect cognitive development. Vietnam’s literacy gains and Rwanda’s health improvements illustrate how steady investments compound. Which reforms—teacher training, vocational tracks, or preventive care—would most accelerate your country’s growth performance over the next ten years?
Ideas, openness, and the institution advantage
Technology spreads through trade, migration, and digital networks, but institutions decide how well ideas take root. Estonia’s digital government lowered frictions and encouraged entrepreneurship, showing how rules can unlock diffusion. Subscribe for case studies that compare policy designs and the measurable uplift they deliver across different economies.
Convergence and Divergence: Who Catches Up and Why
01
When poorer countries grow faster
Conditional convergence occurs when countries with lower initial incomes grow faster after controlling for fundamentals like education, stability, and openness. In parts of Eastern Europe, credible reforms encouraged investment and sped catch-up. Where do you see evidence of convergence in your region, and what conditions made it stick?
02
The middle-income trap, and the escape routes
After early gains from cheap labor and capital inflows, economies can stall without innovation, competition, and higher skills. East Asian economies that climbed the value chain invested in research, logistics, and managerial quality. Tell us which sectors in your country could anchor a credible climb beyond assembly and commodity exports.
03
Divergence under pressure: fragility, conflict, and policy drift
Currency crises, governance slippage, and conflict can reverse years of progress, widening gaps with peers. Resilient economies maintain fiscal buffers and predictable rules that keep investment flowing during shocks. Share your experience of policy reversals that derailed growth—and the reforms that helped restore momentum afterward.
Policy Turning Points: Reforms, Experiments, and Lessons
Trade liberalization, when paired with social protection and competition policy, can spur exports while cushioning adjustment. Several Asian economies used special zones to test reforms before scaling. Which safeguards—retraining, portable benefits, or phased tariffs—would help your country open up without leaving communities behind?
Policy Turning Points: Reforms, Experiments, and Lessons
Inflation-targeting central banks and medium-term fiscal frameworks helped countries like Chile and Colombia reduce volatility and attract investment. Credible anchors matter as much as the numbers. Would a fiscal rule or independent council strengthen budget discipline where you live? Tell us what accountability would actually work.
Volatility, Shocks, and the Art of Resilience
Resource-rich countries often grow fast during booms and struggle afterward. Sovereign funds, countercyclical budgets, and transparent contracts can smooth cycles. Chile’s copper rule is a widely discussed example of discipline under pressure. Which stabilizers could help your commodity exporters transform windfalls into sustained growth performance?
Volatility, Shocks, and the Art of Resilience
Flexible exchange rates absorb shocks, but credibility and reserves matter when markets turn anxious. Pegs impose discipline yet require large buffers. The right choice depends on trade structure and institutions. Comment with your country’s experience: did your regime help or hinder recovery after the last global shock?
Inequality, mobility, and the social contract
High inequality can weaken human capital and stall reforms. Transparent taxation, fair competition, and targeted transfers can expand opportunity without choking enterprise. Which policies in your country have measurably widened access to quality education or finance and strengthened confidence in the growth path?
Gender gaps, youth employment, and the demographic window
Closing gender gaps and harnessing youth talent lifts productivity and resilience. When schooling quality, childcare, and training align, participation rises. Bangladesh’s garment sector highlighted how employment access can transform communities. Share concrete initiatives that helped young workers transition into formal, higher-productivity jobs where you live.
Places left behind: regional divides and reconnection
Growth often clusters in a few cities while rural regions lag. Transport corridors, broadband, and place-sensitive skills programs reconnect workers to markets. Tell us which regional investments—feeder roads, reliable power, or university partnerships—could most accelerate inclusive growth performance in your area.
Green Growth and the Net-Zero Opportunity
Efficiency standards, renewables, and smarter grids are driving emissions intensity down in several advanced economies. Costs keep falling as scale expands and finance matures. Which policies would best speed clean power investment in your country while protecting affordability for households and small businesses?
Electric vehicles, batteries, and solar gear create fresh opportunities for mineral-rich and manufacturing-ready economies. Success needs environmental safeguards, transparent royalties, and skills. Comment with your view: where can your country plug into green value chains without repeating old boom-bust cycles?
Carbon pricing, if paired with dividends and retraining, can cut emissions while supporting households and workers. Clear timelines reduce uncertainty and crowd in investment. Subscribe to our policy tracker comparing transition packages and their effects on cross-country economic growth performance.
