Handbook of Development Economics

Development economics as practiced by policy planners and economists

Identifies and discusses the relevant theoretical and empirical literature that describes the fundamental problems that the policies seek to remedy or ameliorate, as well as the literature that evaluates the effects of the policies. This title presents an accurate, self-contained survey of the state of the field.What guidance does academic research really provide to economic policy development? The critical and analytical surveys in this volume investigate links between policies and outcomes by surveying work from broad macroeconomic policies to interventions in microfinance. Asserting that there are no universal correspondences between policies and outcomes, contributors demonstrate instead that only an intense familiarity with the development context and the universe of applicable economic models can generate successful policies. Getting cause-and-effect right is essential for policy design and implementation. With the goal of drawing researchers and policy makers closer, this volume highlights our increasing understanding of ways to combine economic theorizing with careful, thoughtful empirical work.