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Economic Development
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Economic development refers to the sustained increase in the economic standard of living of a country's population, improving the quality of human life through increasing per capita income, reducing poverty, and enhancing individual economic opportunities by developing technology, making more productive and efficient use of physical capital, and increasing human capital. |
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| The concept, as written above, is controversial because of past economic imperialisms, the spectacular failure of many multilateral development projects, the harmful social and environmental impacts of various development projects, the demand for structural adjustments, the increasing gulf between rich and poor in many developing nations, and its confusing understanding of the difference between economic development and economic growth. "Sustainable" development, in part, arose as an answer to Western generated development theories, especially those of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund. In general, critics of Western concepts of economic development have pointed out that: rapid GNP growth may not be the best indicator of well-being; that economic well-being is not the source of all other ingredients that make up a good life (peace, family stability); state and multilateral manipulation of the economy does not guarantee equitable distribution of wealth; and technology (especially technology for greater resource extractions) may harm future generations more than it helps them. They have proposed "alternative development," which usually includes a higher prioritization of self-empowering the poorest, and custom-designing any economic aid and financial restructuring to local traditions and desires. It prohibits megaprojects characteristic of the earlier economic development investments. |
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Keywords economy, improved economic standard of living, job creation, poverty reduction, wealth creation, improving prosperity, economic well-being, developing human capital, technological development, sustainable development, practical economics |
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Hello,
I would like to talk with someone about this organization. Cedpa in particular could be an interesting start. I welcome a conversation. Best, Kim |
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