Economic Development - History

History

Economic development originated in the post war period of reconstruction initiated by the US. During his 1949 inaugural speech President Harry Truman identified the development of undeveloped areas as a priority for the west:

“More than half the people of the world are living in conditions approaching misery. Their food is inadequate, they are victims of disease. Their economic life is primitive and stagnant. Their poverty is a handicap and a threat both to them and to more prosperous areas. For the first time in history humanity possesses the knowledge and the skill to relieve the suffering of these people ... I believe that we should make available to peace-loving peoples the benefits of our store of technical knowledge in order to help them realize their aspirations for a better life… What we envisage is a program of development based on the concepts of democratic fair dealing ... Greater production is the key to prosperity and peace. And the key to greater production is a wider and more vigorous application of modem scientific and technical knowledge”

There have been several major phases of development theory since 1945. From the 1940s to the 1960s the state played a large role in promoting industrialization in developing countries, following the idea of modernization theory. This period was followed by a brief period of basic needs development focusing on human capital development and redistribution in the 1970s. Neo-liberalism emerged in the 1980s pushing an agenda of free trade and Import Substitution Industrialization (ISI), emphasizing comparative advantage. More recently Postdevelopment theory has emerged to challenge the ideas of western-based development by arguing against reductionism, universalism, and euro centricity. Post-Development Theory is rooted in the experiences of Latin America, Africa, and India.