Author: Canaan Bridges Consulting Inc.
The experiences of developing economies are not homogeneous. To avoid the development paradox—undertaking initiatives to foster growth while development remains elusive—a contextual lens is better suited for development projects.
The rapidly changing global landscape challenges us to conceptualize and address development projects differently. Although there is no consensus on what is meant by “development,” the ontologies of development change over time. This means that the concepts, narratives, and norms associated with how most individuals understand, pursue and target economic growth and development are not static, but evolve.
The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) specify benchmarks and targets for development within and across nations. The SDGs are universally recognized as what the results of progression in economies should be (this includes zero hunger, industrialization and innovation, reduction in income equality between countries and the sustainable use of marine resources). As such, the SDGs help frame the “how,” “when,” “where,” and “what” that are central to the many dimensions of development policy choices. Developing countries’ economies are heterogeneous: differences in economic, cultural, and political characteristics impact their economies in varied and often dissimilar ways across regions and even within each country.
Notwithstanding the universal relevance of the SDGs, development policy—in particular, the how, where, and through what mechanisms to achieve the SDGs—needs to be contextually relevant to each country’s peculiarities. The means and processes that lead to sustainable innovation and industrialization in economies may differ. This also holds true for all economies. Institutions, entrepreneurs and consumers in Economy X may respond differently to the same economic shocks experienced by stakeholders in Economy Y. Efforts to revitalize traditional industries, such as tourism and the agricultural sector, leverage the creative industries or the blue economy, or foster advanced manufacturing as an aspect of domestic growth, are likely to be substantially short of expected returns without regard for the domestic realities (and endogenous variables) of the economy.
Focusing on the domestic enablers of development, but in an international context, is more likely to address the barriers to sustainable growth in developing countries.
.