Economic Geography of Human Development : Stratified Growth in Bolivia, Brazil, Guatemala and Peru

This article begins by constructing a model of stratified and divergent economic growth integrating economic geography, human development and endogenous technological change. Even in the presence of perfect capital, goods, and labor markets, economic geography and local governance can lead to stratification and divergence. The article then shows that early child development (ECD) determinants include both individual and local indicators of regional macroeconomic wellbeing, publicly provided goods, and private goods, through 43 regions of Bolivia, Brazil, Guatemala, and Peru. The inequity impact of these various goods is quantified using a concentration index decomposition. Regions attracting migration have experienced higher ECD, and employment is key for ECD. The intergenerational dynamics of mean regional female height for age z-score (HAZ) are stratified and absolutely divergent. Backward regions lag four generations behind advanced regions at the current rate of HAZ change