Economic growth and productivity in Latin America and the Caribbean

Over the past 30 years, economic growth has tended to be low and unstable in Latin America and the Caribbean, as was noted in the 2013 edition of the Economic Survey (ECLAC, 2013b). The analysis presented in this chapter helps explain the factors behind this poor performance, and discusses the challenges the region faces in achieving long-term growth, taking the most immediate determinants into account. A number of exercises, designed to quantify the factors that have driven growth, were therefore carried out on the basis of a “growth accounting” approach. The aim of this analysis is to identify elements that can help gear public policies towards raising growth rates sustainably for the economies of Latin America and the Caribbean.

Related Subject(s): Economic and Social Development