DECO 22A03 - Development economics

This course delves into diverse theories and practical approaches shaping economic development. Through critical analysis, discussions, and presentations, students explore the evolving paradigms, policies, and challenges within economic growth and development. The readings focus on competing explanations of spatial economic patterns and development and draw from a variety of theories and concepts developed in the field of institutional and evolutionary theories, economic geography, regional sciences, innovation and policy studies, etc. The particular focus of the class will be threefold: 1) in-depth examination of the drivers of economic development (e.g. innovation, entrepreneurship, institutions, etc.), 2) the policy lifecycle and policy tools to promote economic development, and 3) policy approaches to drive economic development. We will incorporate guest speakers, case study examples and other types of novel tools to apply theoretical content.

Arnault MORISSON

Séminaire

English

Short biography of the teacher: Arnault Morisson, PhD in economic geography from Utrecht University, Netherlands, is an independent consultant in local and regional economic development, having over five years of professional experience working as a consultant with G.A.C Group and UNIDO Vietnam. Currently, he serves as one of the thematic experts for a Smarter Europe at Interreg Europe Policy Learning Platform. He has completed his Postdoctoral research in economic geography at the University of Bern, Switzerland. His research interests revolve around innovation policies, innovation governance, evolutionary and institutional economics, where he applies both quantitative and qualitative methods.

Spring 2024-2025

To validate the course, the student is expected to pass the following assignments (at least three grades): 1) Group presentation – assignment 1 (35%) Working groups will have to prepare a PPT presentation (10 slides/25 minutes max) to introduce one of the topics below to the class: • Shock therapy in Russia • Great Firewall in China • Chicago boys in Chile • Gross National Happiness (GNH) in Bhutan The presentation must have the following structure: background, rationale, positive and negative impacts, critically discuss the topic. 2) Group presentation and written report – assignment 2 (50%) Your working group will become an international team of consultants for fostering economic development. For this assignment, your working group will have to prepare a consulting report and present the recommendations to the class. Topic: ”The Government of Thailand wants to diversify its economy. The Government is asking you, a team of international consultants, to propose new industrial trajectories and to write a strategy to support the development of the emerging industries.” Consultancy report In your report, you must provide: • An analysis of Thailand's context, • A selection of industrial trajectories and rationale, • A description of good practices from other countries, • A strategic roadmap, • A list of policy recommendations. The consultancy report should meet the following requirements: • Length requirement: 4,000-5,000 words (up to 15 pages), including cover page and Annex • Font: Arial • Font size: 12 • Line spacing: 1 • Language of the paper: English • Respond to the task assigned • Please insert page numbering consecutively • Ensure your paper has proper spelling and grammar, and uses policymaker language Presentation Working groups will have to prepare a PPT presentation (15 slides/35 minutes max) to share their reports and findings with the class. 3) Participation in discussion and debate for the group presentation (15%)

At the end of the course, the student is expected to : 1) Understand economic development critically from different theoretical perspectives. 2) Apply policy tools and strategies for promoting economic development. 3) This course aims to equip students with a comprehensive understanding of economic development paradigms, enabling critical thinking and practical application through case studies and group presentations.