Deepak Nayyar new

ASIAN TRANSFORMATIONS:
An Inquiry into the Development of Nations
Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2019

Abstract:
Gunnar Myrdal published his magnum opus, Asian Drama: An Inquiry into the Poverty of Nations, in 1968. He was deeply pessimistic about development prospects in Asia. The fifty years since then have witnessed a remarkable social and economic transformation of Asia – even if it has been uneven across countries and unequal between people – that simply could not have been expected at the time. Asian Transformations: An Inquiry into the Development of Nations analyses the fascinating story of economic development in Asia spanning half a century.

The book sets the stage by discussing the contribution of Gunnar Myrdal to the debate on development then and now, and providing a long-term historical perspective on Asia in the world. It then uses cross-country thematic studies on governments, economic openness, agricultural transformation, industrialization, macroeconomics, poverty and inequality, education and health, employment and unemployment, institutions, and nationalisms, to analyse processes of change while recognizing the diversity in paths and outcomes. Specific country-studies on China, India, Indonesia, and Vietnam, and sub-region studies on East Asia, Southeast Asia, and South Asia highlight turning points in economic performance and discuss factors underlying success or failure.

Including in-depth studies by eminent economists and social scientists, Asian Transformations comprehensively examines the phenomenal changes that are transforming economies in Asia, and reflects on the future prospects for this continent over the next twenty-five years. It is a cohesive and multidisciplinary study of a rapidly changing economic landscape, which makes an important contribution to understanding the complexities of development from different perspectives.