Understanding Small-island Developing States: Fragility and External Shocks

Small island developing states (SIDS) are characterised by high economic, geographical and social vulnerability. These states are perceived as economically vulnerable, exhibiting poor economic performance, and embedding low levels of achieved well-being on most criteria. SIDS, which occupy very large parts of the world, face idiosyncratic development challenges largely owing to their susceptibility to external shocks. Still, these countries are all too often overlooked in the development research literature.

Arising from a UNU-WIDER research project, this book provides in-depth research on the international dimensions of SIDS development experiences. Using a wealth of data, as well as case studies, the main topics examined comprise: aid, policies and growth; the costs of neglect, in terms of losses owing to a country falling into the fragile states group, of that country and those in its region; the composition of trade and the impact of external shocks, and the impact of remittances. The studies jointly provide valuable insights for small islands and other developing countries in the pursuit of sustainable growth and development.

This book was published as a special issue of the Journal of Development Studies.

Amelia U. Santos-Paulino is a Research Fellow at the World Institute for Development Economics Research (UNU-WIDER) in Helsinki, Finland. She specializes in trade and development, with particular reference to developing and least developed countries, and her work has been published in several academic publications including the Economic Journal, and World Development. She has been a consultant for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), for the World Bank, and for the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

Mark McGillivray is the Chief Economist of the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID), and UNU-WIDER former Deputy Director. He is also an honorary Professor of Development Economics at the University of Glasgow, an External Fellow of the Centre for Economic Development and International Trade at the University of Nottingham, and an Inaugural Fellow of the Human Development and Capability Association.

Wim Naudé is Senior Research Fellow and Project Director at UNU-WIDER. He has published widely on regional and local development, entrepreneurship and small business, and the development challenges facing African countries.