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Economic development in Africa and Europe: reciprocal comparisons

Broadberry, Stephen and Gardner, Leigh A. (2016) Economic development in Africa and Europe: reciprocal comparisons. Revista de Historia Economica - Journal of Iberian and Latin American Economic History, 34 (1). pp. 11-37. ISSN 0212-6109

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Identification Number: 10.1017/S0212610915000348

Abstract

Recent advances in historical national accounting have allowed for global comparisons of GDP per capita across space and time. Critics have argued that GDP per capita fails to capture adequately the multi-dimensional nature of welfare, and have developed alternative measures such as the human development index. Whilst recognising that these wider indicators provide an appropriate way of assessing levels of welfare, we argue that GDP per capita remains a more appropriate measure for assessing development potential, focussing on production possibilities and the sustainability of consumption. Twentieth-century Africa and pre-industrial Europe are used to show how such data can guide reciprocal comparisons to provide insights into the process of development on both continents.

Item Type: Article
Official URL: http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayJourna...
Additional Information: © 2016 Instituto Figuerola, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid
Divisions: Economic History
Subjects: H Social Sciences > HC Economic History and Conditions
J Political Science > JN Political institutions (Europe)
JEL classification: N - Economic History > N0 - General
N - Economic History > N0 - General > N01 - Development of the Discipline: Historiographical; Sources and Methods
N - Economic History > N1 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Growth and Fluctuations
N - Economic History > N1 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Growth and Fluctuations > N13 - Europe: Pre-1913
N - Economic History > N1 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Growth and Fluctuations > N17 - Africa; Oceania
Date Deposited: 20 Jan 2016 11:39
Last Modified: 18 Jan 2024 00:18
Projects: SSH7-CT-2008-225342
Funders: European Commission’s 7th Framework Programme
URI: http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/65069

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