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Saad Filho, Alfredo and Weeks, John (2013) 'Curses, Diseases and Other Resource Confusions.' Third World Quarterly, 34 (1). pp. 1-21.

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Abstract

Natural resource rents, development assistance and unrequited foreign exchange inflows such as remittances relax the balance of payments constraint on economic growth. The failure of some governments to translate these resources into successful development has been attributed to an affliction called ‘Dutch disease’, or, more ominously, to a ‘curse’ associated with the availability of natural resources. This paper examines the disease/curse analysis and rejects it in favour of a political economy explanation of the problems associated with resource use. We argue that conventional analysis of resource-rich countries is misleading because its various manifestations are based on inappropriate assumptions and flawed logic. In practice the ‘curse’ and the ‘disease’ are outcomes of policy decisions, rather than manifestations of deep structural weaknesses, and they are more likely to be suffered in countries whose governments pursue neoliberal economic policies.

Item Type: Journal Article
SOAS Departments & Centres: Legacy Departments > Faculty of Law and Social Sciences > Department of Development Studies
ISSN: 01436597
DOI (Digital Object Identifier): https://doi.org/10.1080/01436597.2012.755010
Date Deposited: 09 Jun 2015 12:37
URI: https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/id/eprint/20009

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