What explains poverty of Sub Saharan Africa and South Asia? One view holds the disease environment of these regions as the primary culprit. Others see it as a typical symptom of growth retarding institutions. We test validity of these competing assertions for a cross section of countries. Our results indicate that institutions are the prime determinant of economic performance of countries. Disease does not play a significant role in determining outcomes. On the contrary, we find support for the indirect effect of disease via institutions, as asserted by the 'institutions school'. Interestingly, the 'institutions school' contention about geography having no direct effect on income is also not validated. Our results show that being land locked can pose significant disadvantage for a country. Endowment of hydrocarbon, however, is beneficial for economic outcomes.
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Paper provided by University Library of Munich, Germany in its series MPRA Paper with number
17090.
Find related papers by JEL classification: O43 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - Institutions and Growth I10 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - General
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Chris Papageorgiou & Shankha Chakraborty & Fidel Perez-Sebastian, .
"Diseases and Development,"
Departmental Working Papers
2005-12, Department of Economics, Louisiana State University.
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Other versions:
Shankha Chakraborty & Chris Papageorgiou & Fidel Pérez Sebastián, 2006.
"Diseases and Development,"
DEGIT Conference Papers
c011_044, DEGIT, Dynamics, Economic Growth, and International Trade.
[Downloadable!]