We present a simple model that illustrates how democracy may improve the quality of economic institutions. The model further suggests that institutional quality varies more across autocracies than across democracy and that the positive effect of democracy on institutional quality is increasing...

The agricultural performances depend, on the one hand, on the volume, structure and quality of the resources allotted, and, on the other hand, on their management, according to the economic system and to the national policies in the field. This article draws a parallel between the two...

The paper focuses on regional determinants of entrepreneurship. It basically asks the question which effect different regional characteristics have on new business formation rates in an economy where the level of start-up activity is more or less "zero" across regions since entrepreneurship is...

Does trade improve institutions and contribute to long run growth? I develop a theory of trade, in which trade liberalization provides incentive to change institutions in two ways. On the one hand, trade leads to specialization according to comparative advantage, expanding the industries that do...

Is tourism an opportunity for lagging countries in the elusive quest for growth (Easterly, 2002)? Recent empirical evidence suggests that the answer is a cautious yes. Aggregate cross-country data show that tourism specialization is likely to be associated with higher per capita GDP growth rates...