PoliticalEconomyofSouthAsia

3 Credits · Level: Graduate

The South Asian region has evolved from being one defined by abject poverty, stagnating incomes, and low productivity, to a region that is now seen as having strong growth fundamentals, which if combined with effective policies and technology can be the cornerstone of the mid-21st century world order. This course will be divided into parts. In the first part, we will discuss historical episodes of growth after the South Asian economies became independent. Here will analyze disaggregated country-specific data to understand what factors and policies led or did not lead to growth. This will be followed by discussion and debate on certain pertinent issues such as the role of government policies in alleviating poverty and enhancing livelihoods, the evolving nature of industrialization, health, education, the demographic transition, institutional policies, and reform. In the final part of the course, we will examine the changing degree of integration of these economies with the rest of the world. In particular, we will cover how important these economies have become for global trade, the challenges remaining as well as the changing landscape of trade and industrial policies in these countries.