A Growth Comparison of Mauritius and Jamaica

Andre Haughton () and Wendel Ivey ()
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Andre Haughton: University of the West Indies
Wendel Ivey: Bank of Jamaica

Chapter Chapter 9 in Overcoming Productivity Challenges in Small Countries, 2023, pp 229-258 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract This chapter gives a contextual analysis of Jamaica economic progression compared to Mauritius. Two economies who share several similarities in their early post-independence era but have achieved different levels of developmental success. Mauritius has become one of the latest countries to achieve developed or high-income status as classified by the World Bank while Jamaica is aspirational. The objective of this chapter is to identify aspects of Mauritius’s successful developmental strategy that Jamaica can learn from. The findings suggest that Mauritius has strong institutions and a coalition government which involves both major and minority groups in the decision-making process. This allows the country to take a long-term policy-making approach that encourages policy continuity. Additionally, the high quality of institutions in Mauritius was instrumental in the effective operation of the Export Processing Zones (EPZs) which contributed significantly to their growth and development. The EPZs were also used as an institutional mechanism to successfully carry out the heterodox opening trade regime that Mauritius utilized. Lastly, the Chinese were also an important factor in the Mauritian Miracle. The establishment of a corruption watchdog agency with the power to prosecute corrupt public officials was also instrumental for corruption control in Mauritius and is valuable lesson for Jamaica based on the prevalence and perception of corruption in Jamaica which has no institution with the power to prosecute corrupt officials.

Keywords: Export Processing Zone; Corruption; Economic development; Jamaica (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-23301-2_9

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