Dr Henri Ghesquiere was Director of the IMF-Singapore Regional Training Institute (2004-2005) and served on the staff of the International Monetary Fund during 1978-2005. At the IMF, he was closely involved with macroeconomic lending programs and growth-oriented stabilization policies in Latin America, Africa, Eastern Europe, and Asia. As a senior IMF official in numerous countries, the author has accumulated a vast amount of practical experience. Henri Ghesquiere holds degrees in humanities and economics from the University of Leuven, Belgium and earned his Ph.D. in economics from Yale University. Among his publications is a book on economic development in Southeast Asia (1976).
Publisher
Gale Asia
Volume
Copyright
2009
ISBN13
9789814253642
Release
Format
eBook
Grade Level
College Freshman - College Senior
DDC
TBD
Overview
This monograph seeks the key to good economic policy by explaining Singapore's remarkably rapid development-the world's fastest-growing economy between 1960 and 2000-and asks whether the city-state's success can be translated to other countries. Engineering prosperity is at the heart of Singapore. The book demonstrates how exceptional cohesion amongst economic outcomes, policies, institutions, values, and leadership over a long period account for the impressive results obtained. The author is careful not to present Singapore as a model to be copied uncritically in its specifics but as a case history that illustrates general principles which other countries might wish to apply to their particular circumstances.
Key features include:
Lays out simply and clearly the interaction between fiscal and monetary prudence, capital accumulation and labor force improvement, openness to foreign investment, predictability of the policy environment, and not least, how the Singapore government co-opted popular support by providing opportunities for all, including ethnic minorities
Emphasizes general principles, while illustrating their specific implementation in the Singapore context, to make the book relevant to policy-makers elsewhere
