The Political Economy of Poverty, Equity, and Growth: Malawi and Madagascar (World Bank Comparative Study) - Hardcover

Pryor, Frederic L.

9780195208238: The Political Economy of Poverty, Equity, and Growth: Malawi and Madagascar (World Bank Comparative Study)

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0195208234 ISBN 13: 9780195208238

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 1991

Malawi and Madagascar are poor, agricultural nations that have had very different degrees of economic success over the past quarter century. The economic ideologies of their governmental leaders have been, respectively, capitalist and socialist; and the two countries have pursued quite different strategies of economic development. This is the first book in the English language focusing on the economic systems and long-term economic policies of either country. Using the framework of the "New Political Economy," it attempts to answer three critical questions: Why have these nations chosen such different types of economic institutions and strategies of development? With what types of policies have these governments tried to realize their different goals? What has been the impact of such policies and their implementation on both economic growth and the distribution of income? The author shows clearly the linkages between agricultural policies designed to accelerate growth and the unintended widening of rural income differentials that resulted in both countries and how these relationships provided the basic mechanism underlying economic performance. The comparison of the experiences of these two nations serves not just to advance our knowledge of Africa, but also to illustrate some general forces linking poverty, equity, and growth in all developing nations.

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About the Author:

Frederic L. Pryor is at Swarthmore College.

Review:

"Important because not much scholarly work has been done on either of the two countries examined....Perhaps the most innovative chapter in the book is the last, 'Explorations in Political Economy.' This 'exercise in positive economics' richly deserves the attention of all students of economic development."--Choice

"He has by this impressive work enabled us to be much better informed about the recent economic history of these countries, especially Madagascar, which will be unfamiliar to many Africanists working in the English language."--African Affairs

"By contrasting the experiences of Malawi and Madagascar, the study increases the understanding of relations among povery, equity, and growth in all developing countries."--Policy and Development

"Frederick Pryor has to be congratulated on the pioneering work he has done on Malawi and Madagascar. Pryor has done an impressive job of comparing and contrasting the economic performances of these two AFrican countries and as Deepak Lal and Hla Myint put it in the foreword to the book, 'Frederick Pror has succeeded in putting Malawi and Madagascar on the scholarly map.'"--International Review for Social Sciences

"Pryor has made an outstanding contribution to cross country analysis."--African Studies Review

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