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by William Maloney (Author), Xavier Cirera (Author), Maria Marta Ferreyra (Author)
Latin America and the Caribbean has lost not decades but a century of growth due to its inability to learn---to identify, adapt, and implement the new technologies emerging since the Second Industrial Revolution. Superstars like Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay fell behind peers like France and Germany, while the entire region retrogressed in industries it once dominated and was unable to take advantage of new opportunities that propelled similarly lagging countries to high-income status. The report shows that this remains the case today as the region's firms continue to lag in assimilating new technologies. However, it argues that Latin America and the Caribbean can reclaim the lost century by building learning economies, creating the human capital, institutions, and incentives needed to increase the demand for knowledge, facilitate the flow of new ideas, and foment the process of experimentation. "This outstanding book tackles one of Latin America's greatest development puzzles: its failure to build high-income economies. The authors present a comprehensive theory placing knowledge--its creation, assimilation, and use--at the core of the explanation. Drawing on cutting-edge research, they meticulously document the empirical significance of each element and weave the threads together with remarkable precision, leaving no loose ends. In addition, they examine the missed opportunities that could have reshaped Latin America's trajectory, advocating for a new knowledge-driven approach to industrial policy. A definitive reference on Latin American development, this book is essential reading for scholars, policy makers, and anyone invested in the region's economic future." -- Diego Comin, Professor of Economics, Dartmouth College "Nearly a century ago, Joseph Schumpeter highlighted the importance of the creation, application, and dissemination of knowledge for the prosperity of nations. And across the century that followed, numerous high-growth countries have confirmed his path to success. But, sadly, most of Latin America and the Caribbean has not. In this magnificent new book, readers will find data, information, theory, and arguments that explain why. More importantly, by examining the mechanics of knowledge assimilation and creation at the center of the 'innovation machine' that drives growth, interested readers will find in this text a wide variety of tools and mechanisms adapted to our local conditions to boost the region's economic prosperity." -- José Miguel Benavente, Chief Executive Officer, Chilean Economic Development Agency (CORFO)
