By Bilawal Hammad
Your commercial awareness dose
Inclusive growth and development is a buzz word in this 21st-century globalized world. Every nation wants to be on track of SDGs (sustainable development goals) through its inclusive development strategies and policies. Inclusiveness of development ensures that the growth process is equitably distributed in society.
Asia, as a region, is developing by leaps and bounds since the last decade or so. The development in Asia is exclusive in nature; that is, it leads to inequitable distribution of resources in society. Thus growth in Asia is consonant to inequality. This is not the case in the whole of Asia as there are exceptions to it with the likes of South Korea, Singapore and Japan.
Asia has the highest Gini coefficient (statistics representing the income inequality within the region) in the world after Africa. There is mass abject poverty and inequality in Asia, especially in areas like India, China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and Srilanka. In order to achieve SDGs and thwart the excesses of poverty and inequality, Asia must opt for a more inclusive growth strategy that assures equitable progress in all segments of society.
Apart from some, most of the Asian economy grows in spurts as they cannot sustain their growth and development, the reason being the flawed growth strategies. Almost all of Asia follows the capitalist system (except China and North Korea) and in this particular economic system, the policy framework mechanism needs to be vigilant to nip poverty and inequality in the bud. In capitalism, resources are in the hands of few; hence the government must cope with their redistributive policies to attain equitable distribution of resources promising inclusive growth and development. But, this is easy said than done.
The exclusive development process in Asia is distorting its targeted path of SDGs. South Asian nations focus more on infrastructural development; thereafter, their human resource is in an abysmal state. As a result, industrial and services sector might grow, and the agricultural sector may lag behind. This would impact industrial sector through sub-standard raw materials and higher input cost, which, as a result, may affect the services sector as well. Social indicators like health and education would be below the international standard. Plummeting spending on education would cause havoc in a human capital resource which is indispensable to the industrial and services sector. In short, this is a vicious cycle that would altogether be adverse for society as a whole.
LDCs (least developed countries) and DCs (developing countries) focus more on infrastructural development to maximize their growth rate, which obviously is exclusive in nature. It is not being said here that the nations must not focus on infrastructure; rather, they should find a balanced approach between infrastructure and human resource development. Such a policy framework would ensure more inclusive growth and development.
Even the highly developed economies of the world went through the same process. The USA from 1789 to 1929 focused more on infrastructural development. The 1929 financial crunch led to a shift in public policy, and one can see in US history that after 1929 there was a balance in their public policy framework and equity-based approach was adopted to focus more on human capital development. Asia is following the suit, but the time has come to shift gears and focus more on human capital development.
Asian countries must focus on pro-poor growth policies, invest more in public sector development programs, health and education as a percentage of GDP. They also must invest more in R & D (Research and Development) and ensure the smooth flow of trade, investment, regional connectivity and cooperation if they ought to achieve inclusive growth and development. Having mentioned these points, it is also essential to note that Asia is the least integrated region in the world.
In a crux, Asia is a wealthy continent, both in human and mineral resources. Therefore Asian nations must ameliorate their policy framework to attain inclusive growth and development, which is more pro-poor in nature. Once Asia treads on the right path, it can surpass the other continents as a developed region of the world.
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