Role of Human Resource Development
I.
ROLE OF HUMAN CAPITAL IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: SOME MYTHS AND REALITIES*
A. Background
The world today is very different from the one which experienced the two world wars. During the second half of the twentieth century, considerable advancements in science and technology, along with the establishment of broadly-based governments and strengthening of institutions, have led to significant socio-economic progress and improvement in the lives of a large number of people in many countries. However, there are still many others among us who are lagging behind. The current reality in the Asian region is the existence of significant differences in the state of economic development among countries. For instance, when GNP per capita income is taken as an indicator of economic development (see figure I.1), the figures for both Asian least developed countries and South Asian developing countries such
Figure I.1. GNP per capita income (in US$), 1999
10000 9000 8000 7000 US dollars 6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0
Bangladesh
East Asian DCs
Asian LDCs
Bhutan Cambodia Lao Nepal People 's Democratic Republic
South Asian DCs
India Pakistan
Malaysia
Republic of Korea
Thailand
This paper was prepared by Mr M. Aynul Hasan, Chief, Least Developed Countries Section, Development Research and Policy Analysis Division, ESCAP.
*
Source: Asian Development Bank, Key Indicators of Developing Asian and Pacific Countries (Oxford University Press) various issues.
as India and Pakistan are still below $ 500 whereas those for East Asian developing countries range from over $ 2,000 for Thailand to as high as about $ 8,500 in the Republic of Korea. Given the vastly divergent economic development among the groups of countries, it would be a common myth to presume that the discrepancy in development is somehow inherited by the respective groups of countries. Contrary to this general perception, it is quite an enigma to note that, this had not been the case in
ROLE OF HUMAN CAPITAL IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: SOME MYTHS AND REALITIES*
A. Background
The world today is very different from the one which experienced the two world wars. During the second half of the twentieth century, considerable advancements in science and technology, along with the establishment of broadly-based governments and strengthening of institutions, have led to significant socio-economic progress and improvement in the lives of a large number of people in many countries. However, there are still many others among us who are lagging behind. The current reality in the Asian region is the existence of significant differences in the state of economic development among countries. For instance, when GNP per capita income is taken as an indicator of economic development (see figure I.1), the figures for both Asian least developed countries and South Asian developing countries such
Figure I.1. GNP per capita income (in US$), 1999
10000 9000 8000 7000 US dollars 6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0
Bangladesh
East Asian DCs
Asian LDCs
Bhutan Cambodia Lao Nepal People 's Democratic Republic
South Asian DCs
India Pakistan
Malaysia
Republic of Korea
Thailand
This paper was prepared by Mr M. Aynul Hasan, Chief, Least Developed Countries Section, Development Research and Policy Analysis Division, ESCAP.
*
Source: Asian Development Bank, Key Indicators of Developing Asian and Pacific Countries (Oxford University Press) various issues.
as India and Pakistan are still below $ 500 whereas those for East Asian developing countries range from over $ 2,000 for Thailand to as high as about $ 8,500 in the Republic of Korea. Given the vastly divergent economic development among the groups of countries, it would be a common myth to presume that the discrepancy in development is somehow inherited by the respective groups of countries. Contrary to this general perception, it is quite an enigma to note that, this had not been the case in
References: Hafiz Pasha, M. Aynul Hasan, Aisha Ghaus and M. Ajaz Rasheed, Pakistan”, Pakistan Development Review 579. - ______, 1996b. “An integrated planning model a expenditure on social development: the case of Pakistan,” ESCAP , Box V.1, New York, pp. 144 145. Romer, Paul, 1986. “Increasing returns and longof Political Economy, Vol. 94, pp. 1002-1037. Journal