Otaviano Canuto on the Middle-Income Trap

May 19, 2021

Otaviano Canuto, Senior fellow, Policy Center for the New South The “middle-income trap” has become a broad designation trying to capture the many cases of developing countries that succeeded in evolving from low- to middle-levels of per capita income, but then appeared to stall, losing momentum along the route toward the higher income levels of advanced economies. We need to approach middle-income countries as being in a complex transition phase between accumulation and innovation-based economies. Individual middle-income country experiences of falling into a “trap” may be approached as cases of lack of or failing performance in footing the bill in terms of appropriate policies and institutions.

Speakers
Otaviano Canuto
Senior Fellow
Senior Fellow at the Policy Center for the New South, Affiliate Professor at Mohammed VI Polytechnic University and Non-Resident Senior Fellow at Brookings Institute. Former Vice President and Executive Director at the World Bank, Executive Director at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Vice President at the Inter-American Development Bank. ...

RELATED CONTENT

  • March 26, 2024
    يعتبر المجال القروي بالمغرب ركيزة من ركائز الهوية الوطنية، حيث يتسم بثراء ثقافي يتجلى في عاداته الاقتصادية الخاصة وتنوعه الجغرافي المكون من جبال وسهول وصحاري، إضافةً إلى تعدد المجتمعات وأنماط العيش المختلفة. فكيف يتميز المجال القروي عن المجال الحضاري؟ وكيف تطورت المظاهر الاقتصادية والسي...
  • Authors
    Miguel Vazquez
    March 26, 2024
    Low-carbon hydrogen is a potential contributor to the goals defined in the Paris Agreement, i.e. limiting the increase in the global average temperature to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. The transformation of hydrogen production is a part of this effort, as current production methods in the hydrogen industry are carbon-intensive. To achieve net-zero scenarios, hydrogen production and consumption will need to change. Creating a pipeline of projects plays a central role in drivin ...
  • Authors
    Tiago C. Peixoto
    Luke Jordan
    March 20, 2024
    Based on observable facts, this policy paper explores some of the less- acknowledged yet critically important ways in which artificial intelligence (AI) may affect the public sector and its role. Our focus is on those areas where AI's influence might be understated currently, but where it has substantial implications for future government policies and actions. We identify four main areas of impact that could redefine the public sector role, require new answers from it, or both. The ...
  • Authors
    March 13, 2024
    Le 20 février 2024, le Policy Center for the New South et la Banque mondiale ont mis à profit  l’organisation d’un événement pour échanger sur les résultats d'une récente évaluation du partenariat entre le Royaume et l’institution de Bretton Woods . Cette rencontre a été l’occasion de revenir sur les accomplissements, les défis rencontrés et les opportunités à venir afin d’orienter la collaboration future entre les deux parties. Au cours des 15 dernières années, le Maroc et la Banq ...
  • Authors
    Zakaria Elouaourti
    March 8, 2024
    This paper was originally published on sciencedirect.com   Our study aims to investigate the role of financial inclusion as a mediator in the relationship between contextual factors and entrepreneurial willingness in Africa. While previous research has emphasized the importance of improving institutional and contextual factors to foster entrepreneurship, our study adds a new dimension by highlighting the critical need for tailored financial services that can cater to the unique ne ...
  • Authors
    March 4, 2024
    This blog was originally published on huawei.com   What impact do you think ICT and connectivity can have in fighting global poverty? At the World Bank we had a very enthusiastic and optimistic view on the potential impact of technology and ICT. Brazil had a cash transfer program for poorer families where households received money directly from the government, regardless of whether they had bank accounts. The money was not distributed by hand but done electronically: the governme ...
  • March 1, 2024
    This paper examines Brazil's economic growth patterns over the last three decades and identifies a missed opportunity for the country to attain high-income status by the mid-2010s. Instead, Brazil has suffered from low productivity growth, and has made little progress in transforming its production and export structures in favor of higher value-added activities. This premature de-industrialization makes it challenging for Brazil to transition from its long- standing upper-middle-inc ...
  • March 01, 2024
    This podcast tackles the intricacies of Biden’s presidency from a political economy standpoint. Our guests initially discuss the degree to which it can be argued that US democracy has rec ...