Economic development
Economic development and systemic risk interact in both directions: shocks reverse development gains, and the structure of an economy (diversification, informality, fiscal space) decides how far a shock travels.
- 01In briefThe short answer
- 02Three mandatesThe field, seen three ways
- 03The systemic questionShocks, scarring and fiscal space
- 04FrameworksStatistics and assessment
- 05CouplingsDevelopment and the other fields
- 06GroundingThe methods behind the field
- 07Key termsTerms used on this page
GCRI · Institution · service level R0
The short answer.
Economic development as a field of risk covers structural transformation, growth, productivity, jobs and public investment, and how systemic shocks set back development gains. In the Nexus Consortium it is studied as science at GCRI by Economic Development and understood financially at GRA by Development Finance Nexus; this gateway links those platforms and the methods they share.
Trade and supply corridors in the La Plata Basin.
Ports, chokepoints and the inland corridors behind them, and how far each division sits from a seaport, shown for the La Plata Basin as an example geography for this subject.
The field, seen three ways.
Governance and dialogue
No platform yet in this field.
Shocks, scarring and fiscal space.
Disasters, pandemics and commodity shocks can leave lasting output losses, especially where firms are small, credit is scarce and social protection is thin. The measurement challenge is separating the direct loss from the persistent effect on growth paths, and attributing outcomes to policy choices rather than luck.
- Diversification of exports and fiscal revenues.
- Informality and its effect on reach of support measures.
- Debt sustainability as the constraint on post-shock response.
Statistics and assessment.
| Framework or body | What it governs or supplies |
|---|---|
| System of National Accounts | Definitions of output, income and capital |
| IMF and World Bank debt sustainability frameworks | Assessing fiscal space under shocks |
| World Bank Country Climate and Development Reports | Country-level links between climate and development |
Development and the other fields.
- Sovereign finance: the budget constraint.
- Development finance: concessional and private flows.
- Work: labour markets and skills.
The science sits on Economic Development; methods start from economics.
Terms used on this page.
Each term as this page uses it. Where a standard-setting body defines the term, the wording follows that body.
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Economic development | Sustained improvement in living standards, including income, health, education and opportunity. |
| Structural transformation | The shift of labour and output from lower- to higher-productivity activities. |
| Inclusive growth | Growth whose benefits are widely shared across income groups, regions and genders. |
| Fiscal space | The room in a government's budget to spend or cut taxes without endangering fiscal sustainability. |
Where this page's references lead.
The bodies and documents this page is read against. Status and editions change; each link goes to the issuing body.
Questions and answers.
Why does GCRI host field gateways?
Around GCRI.
Start with an enquiry.
The current service level is R0: information and enquiries. An enquiry receives a reference and names the next step; applications, payments, compute allocations and registrations open only when their team, terms and review capacity exist.