Parallel session
Asian transformations

Asia has witnessed a remarkable economic transformation since the publication of Gunnar Myrdal’s Asian Drama half a century ago. UNU-WIDER has undertaken a study, Asian Transformations: An Inquiry into the Development of Nations, which analyses the incredible story of economic development in Asia over the last 50 years, reflecting on how the next 25 years might unfold.

Important lessons can be drawn from that experience – successes, failures, or mixed outcomes – that can help in thinking about the prospects and possibilities for countries in Asia, whether leaders or laggards. It should also contribute to our understanding of development processes with lessons for the entire developing world.

This session will provide glimpses of the work in progress to highlight its approach, relevance and implications.

Session videos

Parallel 4.1 | Asian transformations

Kaushik Basu | Ronald Findlay | Frances Stewart | Deepak Nayyar | Q&A

 

 

 

Collaborators

Deepak Nayyar | Chair | Presentation

Deepak Nayyar is Emeritus Professor of Economics at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi and was, until recently, Distinguished University Professor of Economics at the New School for Social Research, New York. He was Vice Chancellor of the University of Delhi and has served as Chief Economic Adviser to the Government of India and Secretary in the Ministry of Finance. Professor Nayyar served as Chairman of the Board of UNU-WIDER, Helsinki, from 2001 to 2008.

Kaushik Basu | Presenter

Kaushik Basu is Professor of Economics at Cornell University and Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution. He is the former Chief Economist and Senior Vice President of the World Bank. Professor Basu is a Fellow of the Econometric Society and received the title Padma Bhushan which is one of the highest civilian awards given by the President of India. Professor Basu’s contributions span development economics, welfare economics, industrial organization and game theory.

Ronald Findlay | Presenter 

Ronald Findlay is the Ragnar Nurkse Professor of Economics at the School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University. His research focus is on international trade, economic development, and political economy. Professor Findlay has published extensively on those topics. He has been awarded honorary doctorates from the New University of Lisbon and the Stockholm School of Economics. Professor Findlay is a former UNU-WIDER Board Member.

Frances Stewart | Presenter | Presentation

Frances Stewart is emeritus professor of Development Economics at the University of Oxford. Previously she was Director of the Oxford Department of International Development and of the Centre for Research on Inequality, Human Security and Ethnicity and Chair of the United Nation’s Committee on Development Policy. In 2009 She received the Mahbub ul Haq award for outstanding contributions to Human Development from the UNDP and the Leontief Prize for Advancing the Frontiers of Economic Thought, from Tufts in 2013. 

Will Martin | Discussant | Presentation

Will Martin is a Senior Research Fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). He is also President of the International Association of Agricultural Economists. He has worked at the Australian Bureau of Agricultural Economics; the Australian National University and the World Bank. His recent research has focused on the impacts of changes in food and trade policies and food prices on poverty and food security in developing countries.