ET2007 ⁽⁸⁾

Read full article Abstract: Two propositions have occupied the policy space in India recently: first, 10% growth in the GDP is possible but only if agriculture grows at the rate of 4% and, second, the acceleration in agriculture is essential to make growth more inclusive. Most Indians view growth in agriculture instinctively important and therefore accept these propositions at face value. But since their acceptance has important implications for which policies get adopted and which ones get short shrift, hard-nosed economists like to examine them more critically. Such examination leads to a more nuanced view of what place we must assign agriculture in the overall development strategy and what else must be done to accelerate poverty reduction. While many may find this unsettling, the hard reality is that agriculture has become virtually irrelevant to the overall GDP growth in India. Faster growth in industry and services than in agriculture over the last several decades has reduced the share of core agriculture in the GDP to only 16%. Therefore, even 4% growth in this sector can contribute only 0.64 percentage points…

Read full article Abstract: Dear chief minister, Kindly accept my belated congratulations on your spectacular victory in UP, by far the largest state in India and larger than all but six countries in the world. Allow me to also applaud you for publicly announcing your preference for poverty-based rather than caste-based reservations. Just as it took Richard Nixon — a Republican President — to open the door to China, it will probably take a Dalit prime minister to replace caste-based by poverty-based reservation in India. But in the meantime, you confront the task of leading UP out of poverty. Your speeches, including some delivered in my part of the world, leave little doubt that you fully understand what must be done. Yet, given the historic opportunity you have, I can scarcely resist offering my two bits’ worth.

Read full article Abstract: The Doha Round negotiations remain stalled. Neither the United States nor European Union (EU) appears eager to jump-start them. This is a pity. Considerable progress has been made since the launch of the round in 2001. At the Cancun ministerial meeting in 2003, contentious Singapore issues, investment, government procurement and competition policy — were removed from the negotiating table. At the Hong Kong ministerial in 2005, the EU agreed to eliminate export subsidies by 2013 as a part of an eventual overall Doha agreement. The member countries also agreed to address the major concerns of the Least Developed Countries.