This paper presents a growth diagnostic exercise for Peru. It notes that although Peru has recently enjoyed high rates of economic growth, this growth is actually a recovery from a significant and sustained growth collapse that began in the 1970s, caused by a decline in export earnings due to...

This paper studies three horizontal policy instruments and two vertical ones in Chilean industrial policy, particularly regarding small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The horizontal instruments are (1) a guarantee program for borrowing by SMEs (FOGAPE), (2) a small subsidy to new exports that...

This paper applies new techniques and metrics to analyze Ecuador's past record of and future opportunities for structural transformation. Ecuador's export dynamics and the emergence of new export activities have been the historical drivers of the country's growth, but recently Ecuador's export...

Paraguay's growth history is characterized by prolonged periods of stagnation, interrupted by a few small recessions and growth accelerations. These dynamics reveal that growth in Paraguay has been dependent on latching on to particular export goods enjoying favorable external conditions, rather...

This document is an input to the IDB country strategy with Belize for the 2008-2012 period. In this study the Growth Diagnostic Model (GDM) is followed with the aim of identifying the binding constraints to Belize's growth. The constrained are defined as those constraints whose removal would...

Towards a Sustainable and Efficient State: The Development Agenda of Belize represents a tangible expression of the Inter-American Development Bank's commitment to generating knowledge as part of its assistance to its borrowing member countries and illustrates the Bank's willingness to accompany...

Export Pioneers in Latin America analyzes a series of case studies of successful new export activities throughout the region to learn how pioneers jump-start a virtuous process leading to economic transformation. The cases of blueberries in Argentina, avocados in Mexico, and aircraft in Brazil...

This paper deals with a topic that has been amply debated in the development literature: the relationship between trade and growth. The paper's hypothesis is that what matters for growth is not merely openness to trade, or, for that matter, export growth per se. The key feature of countries that...

This study covers the impact of the emergence of China on Central American economies, with special emphasis on Guatemala and Honduras. The issue of the China¿s impact is generally approached from the standpoint of threats hovering over the economies of Central America (and of others in Region...

Why are growth rates in Latin America so disappointing? This book reviews the results of an ambitious research project to determine the binding constraints to growth, that is, the barrier whose removal would yield the greatest benefit in terms of growth. Included are case studies from seven...