This file is part of IDEAS, which uses RePEc data


[ Papers | Articles | Software | Books | Chapters | Authors | Institutions | JEL Classification | NEP reports | Search | New papers by email | Author registration | Rankings | Volunteers | FAQ | Blog | Help! ]

Economic Opening and the Demand for Skills in Developing Countries: A Review of Theory and Evidence

Author info | Abstract | Publisher info | Download info | Related research | Statistics
Author Info
David O’Connor
Maria Rosa Lunati
Abstract

A basic feature of development dynamics is the reallocation of labour from low– productivity to higher–productivity activities (generally more capital–intensive and also often more skill–intensive). The expansion of skilled labour supply that accompanies rising per capita incomes is both cause and effect of this shift in skills demand. Over long periods, if skills supply and demand grow apace, skill premia would show little secular change; over shorter periods, however, inevitable lags may show up as growing or shrinking premia.

A policy reform like trade liberalisation can accelerate structural change in an economy, causing an exogenous shift in relative factor demands. For some developing countries, the result may be an increase in skills demand associated with the adoption of newly available foreign technology and lower cost imported capital goods. This demand shift may be permanent or only temporary, but in either case the skills supply should eventually increase in response to ...


La dynamique du développement entraîne une réaffectation de la main–d’œuvre d’activités à faible productivité vers des activités à productivité plus élevée (généralement plus intensives en capital et exigeant le plus souvent des compétences supérieures). L’accroissement de l’offre de main–d’œuvre qualifiée qui accompagne la hausse des revenus par habitant est à la fois cause et conséquence de cette évolution de la demande de compétences. Sur la longue durée, si l’offre et la demande de compétences progressent à un rythme comparable, le revenu supplémentaire associé aux qualifications reste stable. Mais sur des périodes plus courtes, les décalages inévitables entre l’offre et la demande peuvent se traduire par une hausse ou un effondrement de ce gain différentiel.

Une réforme des politiques, comme la libéralisation des échanges, peut accélérer l’évolution structurelle de l’économie, influant de manière exogène sur la demande relative de facteurs. Dans certains pays en développement ...

Download Info
To download:

If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. Information about this may be contained in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help page. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please be patient as the files may be large.

File URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/722638700667
File Format: text/html
File Function:
Download Restriction: no

Publisher Info
Paper provided by OECD, Development Centre in its series OECD Development Centre Working Papers with number 149.

Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML (with abstract), plain text (with abstract), BibTeX, RIS (EndNote, RefMan, ProCite), ReDIF
Length:
Date of creation: Jun 1999
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:oec:devaaa:149-en

Contact details of provider:
Postal: 2 rue Andre Pascal, 75775 Paris Cedex 16
Email:
Web page: http://www.oecd.org/Dev
More information through EDIRC

For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its listing, contact: ().

Related research
Keywords:

Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Sanchez Cantillo, M.V., 2001. "Trade reform and comparative advantage: expectations for Costa Rica's agricultural development," Working Papers - General Series 346, Institute of Social Studies. [Downloadable!]
  2. Piva, Mariacristina & Santarelli, Enrico & Vivarelli, Marco, 2003. "The Skill Bias Effect of Technological and Organisational Change: Evidence and Policy Implications," IZA Discussion Papers 934, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  3. Jörg MAYER, 2001. "Technology Diffusion, Human Capital And Economic Growth In Developing Countries," UNCTAD Discussion Papers 154, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. [Downloadable!]
  4. Mariacristina Piva & Enrico Santarelli & Marco Vivarelli, 2004. "Technological and Organizational Changes as Determinants of the Skill Bias: Evidence from a Panel of Italian Firms," Papers on Entrepreneurship, Growth and Public Policy 2004-03, Max Planck Institute of Economics, Entrepreneurship, Growth and Public Policy Group. [Downloadable!]
  5. Saggay, Ali & Heshmati, Almas & Adel Dhif, Mohamed, 2006. "Effects of Trade Liberalization on Domestic Prices: Some Evidence from Tunisian Manufacturing," Ratio Working Papers 96, The Ratio Institute. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  6. Mayer, Jorg, 2001. "Globalization, Technology Transfer, and Skill Accumulation in Low-Income Countries," Working Papers UNU-WIDER Research Paper , World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER). [Downloadable!]
  7. Mariacristina Piva & Enrico Santarelli & Marco Vivarelli, 2006. "Technological and organizational changes as determinants of the skill bias: evidence from the Italian machinery industry," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 27(1), pages 63-73. [Downloadable!]
  8. Francis Green & Andy Dickerson & Jorge Saba Arbache, 2000. "A Picture of Wage Inequality and the Allocation of Labour Through a Period of Trade Liberalisation: The Case of Brazil," Studies in Economics 0013, Department of Economics, University of Kent. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  9. François Bourguignon & Sylvie Lambert & Akiko suwa-Eisenmann, 2004. "Trade exposure and income volatility in cash-crop exporting developing countries," Research Unit Working Papers 0408, Laboratoire d'Economie Appliquee, INRA. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  10. Andy Dickerson & Francis Green & Jorge Saba Arbache, 2001. "Trade Liberalization and the Returns to Education: A Pseudo-panel Approach," Studies in Economics 0114, Department of Economics, University of Kent. [Downloadable!]
  11. Usman Mustafa & Kalbe Abbas & Amara Saeed, 2005. "Enhancing Vocational Training for Economic Growth in Pakistan," The Pakistan Development Review, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, vol. 44(4), pages 567-584. [Downloadable!]
  12. Jörg MAYER, 2000. "Globalization, Technology Tranfer And Skill Accumulation In Low-Income Countries," UNCTAD Discussion Papers 150, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. [Downloadable!]
Statistics
Access and download statistics

Did you know? Over 80% of the top 1000 economists are registered on RePEc.

This page was last updated on 2009-11-19.


This information is provided to you by IDEAS at the Department of Economics, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Connecticut using RePEc data on a server sponsored by the Society for Economic Dynamics.