Achieving Industrialization In East Asia

This book examines the economic success of the industrializing economies of East Asia. Judged in terms of economic growth, or by a combination of economic and welfare criteria, this group of East Asian countries has established a clear lead over other developing areas of the world.

The phenomenal success of the East Asian Newly Industrializing Economies (NIEs) of Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore is now well-known and documented. Their success has been discussed to such an extent that it has become entrenched as part of the folklore of development economics. The Newly Industrializing Economies of East Asia takes a fresh look at the relevant literature and sifts the rhetoric from the reality. In the course of surveying the vast range of writing two competing paradigms become clear: the neo-classical approach which interprets the East Asian economic miracle as the predictable outcome of `good' policies; and the statist perspective which draws attention to the central role of the government in guiding East Asian economic development. Throughout the book the authors mix country-specific experiences with broader trends.

Catch-Up Industrialization is an innovative examination of how the political ideology of 'developmentalism' has driven East Asian economic growth. The author considers innovative production and management techniques, the patterns of industrial relations, and the way education shapes the workforce, using this information to assess late 20th century East Asian economic development based on economic liberalization and the rapid diffusion of information technology.The term 'catch-up' links developing and developed countries, and defines the socioeconomic mindset common to high-growth societies of Asia. The author's argument differs from neoclassical approaches emphasizing the workings of the market, statist ones emphasizing policy rather than private initiatives, business studies lacking macroeconomic and global perspectives, work by development economists based on agriculture, and World BankIMF studies that lack socio-cultural and historical understanding.

Vogel brings masterly insight to the underlying question of why Japan and the little dragons--Taiwan, South Korea, Hong Kong, and Singapore--have been so extraordinarily successful in industrializing while other developing countries have not.

In surveying the vast range of writing on the East Asian NIEs and their development paths, this book evaluates the competing roles of neo-classical approaches and central government intervention in guiding economic development.

Drawing on a wide range of expertise, this volume addresses fundamental issues surrounding industrialization in Southeast Asia, which are particularly pressing now that the region's miracle has been transformed into a debacle, and the world seeks to draw lessons from the experience. The contributors address crucial questions such as: How did Southeast Asia industrialize? What have been the consequences of domination by foreign investment? Did the region's resource wealth weaken its imperative to industrialize? Why else has Southeast Asia's industrialization been inferior to the rest of the East Asian region? Did the countries' financial systems help industrialization? Was this industrialization sustainable? The volume includes detailed studies of Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia.

East Asia has been an area of high economic growth for several decades. The East Asian High-Tech Drive argues that to maintain the growth momentum, the more advanced East Asian economies need to pay particular attention to policies designed to upgrade their industrial capabilities. The authors argue that effectively functioning institutions, predictable commercial policies, investments in human capital and infrastructure, openness and macroeconomic stability are essential for growth and technological development. Regarding the two lower income economies in the sample, Indonesia is found to have the smallest improvement in the skill intensity of its exports, while the Philippines has registered the slowest economic growth. For both countries, industrial upgrading issues are not as imperative as achieving or regaining rapid, labour-intensive growth as both recently experienced major political instabilities.

'This is an unusually rich and comprehensive comparative analysis of industrialisation and development in Asia. Drawing on the diverse experiences of Malaysia, Singapore, China, India and more, Roy, Blomqvist and Clark skilfully tease out the common institutional threads and the subtle differences in their developmental trajectories. An essential reading for all those interested in the lessons from Asian development.' – Jude Howell, London School of Economics, UK This is a thorough and comprehensive study – both in terms of country coverage and in-depth analysis – covering the economic development of all the major economies in the Asian continent, namely China, India, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore. Before embarking on analyses of different aspects of economic growth and development of these countries, the authors present a thought-provoking analysis of how institutional factors such as geography, history of religion, culture and political governance have been deeply interwoven with development dynamics to shape the growth and development trajectory that each country has subsequently followed. Each country's development path consequently appeared almost be pre-determined. Japan's role as the lead-country in technology transfer under the flying-geese pattern of development is discussed, however the emphasis has shifted of late to China, India, Korea, Malaysia and Singapore. the authors also propose that instead of discussing the failure of India to catch up with China in growth and development outcomes, economists should be commenting on whether China, bestowed with India's highly decentralized democratic governance structure and institutional rigidities, would have been able to achieve the same results as that of India. Only then will a true understanding and appreciation of India's achievements in economic growth and development emerge. Economic Development in China, India and East Asia will be warmly welcomed and appreciated by academics and researchers of international and development economics as well as Asian development and economics. Policy makers and those involved in NGOs in the development and aid arenas will also find this of great interest.