GOVT132E CM - Politics and Economics of Natural Resource Policy in Developing Countries

This seminar course addresses the question of how countries dependent on natural resources ought to husband these resources and invest the proceeds productively. It employs the policy sciences framework to explore the political and economic-policy challenges of minimizing the abuse of resource endowments due to mis-pricing, corruption, intra-governmental conflicts, and perverse governance arrangements. It examines why governments seem to abuse natural resources willfully, what forms of privatization hold promise for better resource use, what fiscal and governance arrangements are optimal for the relationship between government and state natural-resource agencies, and whether resource abundance is actually a “curse” rather than an advantage for a country’s economic and political development. The cases will be drawn predominantly from Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Also listed as ECON 142 CM.

Prerequisites: ECON 101 CM and GOVT 020 CM

Offered: Every other year

Credit: 1

Course Number: GOVT132E CM