 The Generalized System of Preferences of the United States: Does It Promote Industrialization and Economic Growth in Least Developed Countries?Dowlah Caf The Law and Development Review, 2008, vol. 1, issue 1, 74-97 Abstract: The Generalized System of Preferences (GSP)--a system of differential and favorable trade arrangements toward less developed countries, adopted by the General Agreement on Tariff and Trade (GATT)--has been around since the early 1970s. A primary objective of these schemes has been to promote industrialization and economic growth in less developed countries through trade rather than aid. The outcome of such programs has, however, been mixed. This paper identifies some of the underlying political and economic dynamics which led to the dismal performance of the GSP schemes of the United States in respect to the industrialization and economic growth of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs). The paper suggests that the effectiveness of GSP schemes could be significantly improved if they were brought under the binding WTO rules, if greater resources were directed to removing supply constraints in the LDCs, and if developed countries granted unwavering market access to LDC exports. Keywords: Generalized System of Preferences; Least Developed Countries; trade preferences; World Trade Organization; economic integration (search for similar items in EconPapers) Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:bpj:lawdev:v:1:y:2008:i:1:n:5 Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from Access Statistics for this article The Law and Development Review is currently edited by Yong-Shik Lee More articles in The Law and Development Review from De Gruyter |
Is your work missing from RePEc? Here is how to contribute.
Questions or problems? Check the EconPapers FAQ or send mail to .
EconPapers is hosted by the
School of Business at Örebro University.