Comparing Developmental Paths in East Asia, Latin America and Africa

During the 20th century, nations from the regions of East Asia, Latin America and Africa all sought to become globally competitive through industrialisation. Some, like the East Asian Tigers, succeeded while others experienced tumultuous results (Latin America) or did not achieve development at all (Africa). This essay will be comparing each region and their general …

Gershenkron and the Positives of Backwardness

Alexander Gershenkron (1904-1978) argued that backwardness could have a relatively positive economic role in late industrialising nations.[1] Backwardness, in Gershenkron’s sense of the word, is a state in which a country’s industry is behind that of other nations. He argued that this would lead to a number of conditions occurring during industrialisation: institutions would change …