The Time-Travelling Economist

Book excerpt: This insightful and original book explores the key issues that countries in Africa and South Asia need to address in order to escape poverty. Challenging traditional assumptions about the world’s poorest countries, the top priorities to address are identified as adult literacy, electricity for manufacturing, and the consequence of the relationship between fertility and savings. These suggestions are placed within a historical perspective, placing discussions on modern day Africa and South Asia alongside the development of East Asia, Europe, and the Americas in previous generations and centuries. The Time-Travelling Economist aims to move conversations about development beyond the resource curse or private sector failings, with a fresh focus on the policies that governments can embark on independently and affordably that will transform their future. It will be of interest to anyone interested in the future of the world’s low income countries.