Development economics

Development economics studies how low- and middle-income countries can raise living standards, reduce poverty, and sustain economic growth.

Structural transformation: The shift of labor and production from agriculture toward manufacturing and services as economies develop. It describes the sectoral changes that often accompany rising incomes.
Gross domestic product: The market value of final goods and services produced within a country during a specified period. GDP measures economic output, but not how evenly income or well-being is shared.
Microfinance: Financial services, especially small loans, designed for people and businesses with limited access to conventional banking. Its effects on entrepreneurship and poverty have been tested in many development settings.
Amartya Sen: An Indian economist and philosopher whose work links development to human capabilities and freedom. His capabilities approach helped redefine development beyond income growth.
Washington Consensus: A policy agenda emphasizing fiscal discipline, market-oriented reforms, and openness to trade and investment. It contrasts with approaches that give industrial policy and state coordination a larger role.
Human capital: The productive capacities people acquire through education, health, skills, and experience. Education and health investments can raise worker productivity and earnings.
Purchasing power parity: A method of comparing currencies by the prices of equivalent baskets of goods and services. It makes cross-country income comparisons more meaningful when local prices differ.
Conditional cash transfer: A public transfer that gives households cash conditional on actions such as school attendance or health visits. These programs connect immediate income support with investments in children.
W. Arthur Lewis: A Saint Lucian economist known for a model of development through labor transfer from traditional to modern sectors. His model made structural change central to theories of economic growth.
Dependency theory: A family of theories arguing that global economic relationships can reproduce dependence and underdevelopment in poorer countries. It locates persistent poverty in international power relations rather than chiefly domestic constraints.

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