A Quality of Growth Index for Developing Countries: A Proposal

Montfort Mlachila, René Tapsoba and Sampawende Tapsoba

No 2014/172, IMF Working Papers from International Monetary Fund

Abstract: This paper proposes a new quality of growth index (QGI) for developing countries. The index encompasses both the intrinsic nature and social dimensions of growth, and is computed for over 90 countries for the period 1990-2011. The approach is premised on the fact that not all growth is created equal in terms of social outcomes, and that it does matter how one reaches from one level of income to another for various theoretical and empirical reasons. The paper finds that the quality of growth has been improving in the vast majority of developing countries over the past two decades, although the rate of convergence is relatively slow. At the same time, there are considerable cross-country variations across income levels and regions. Finally, emprirical investigations point to the fact that main factors of the quality of growth are political stability, public pro-poor spending, macroeconomic stability, financial development, institutional quality and external factors such as FDI.

Keywords: WP; correlation matrix; composite index; final period; standard deviation; Quality of growth; social indicators; QGI score; benchmark QGI; QGI process; QGI dynamics; growth fundamentals; QGI value; QGI performance; Inclusive growth; Personal income; Income inequality; Sub-Saharan Africa; Africa (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 33
Date: 2014-09-16
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (181)

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Journal Article: A Quality of Growth Index for Developing Countries: A Proposal (2017)
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