Human Capital Formation and Economic Growth in Asia and the Pacific

Wendy Dobson

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2013
• ISBN:
  9781135039820
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Economics
• Subtopic: Economic Theory
• Index: Economics

The entire planet looks to Asian and other emerging markets to sustain growth momentum as traditional markets in the USA and Europe struggle with the slow and arduous processes of deleveraging after the global financial crisis. At the same time, there is growing recognition in Asia that the sources of growth must shift to sustain their own growth momentum in the years ahead. Heavy reliance on the region's high savings rates and plentiful supplies of low-cost labour will have to shift towards increasing the human capital embodied in more educated and skilled labour forces capable of contributing to productivity growth and innovation as future drivers of growth.

Human Capital Formation and Economic Growth in Asia and the Pacific focuses on why and how countries are making this shift. The demographic transition is shown to be a significant factor as ageing populations in Japan, South Korea and China manage declining growth in the labour force by stepping up investments in education, and by changing policies and institutions. Lessons to be learned from these experiences by more youthful populations in Southeast Asia are explored. In addition, attention is paid to the consequences of cross-border differentials in technical knowledge and the quantity and quality of human capital. Several implications for public policy and for international cooperation on human-capital issues in the Asian region are identified.

The chapters in this volume are edited versions of papers presented at the 35th Pacific Trade and Development conference held in Vancouver, Canada, in June 2012. The conference goal was to better understand how governments and business in Asia and the Pacific can apply the key insight that one of the reasons economies grow is because of human-capital formation – the quality and diversity of the labour force are augmented – not just because the labour force grows in size. Students of Asia's growth prospects will find several aspects of this volume of particular value. It includes chapters on the big-picture conceptual and measurement issues; on country experiences in meeting the imperatives of the demographic transition and investing in education and skills training; and on country experiences with attracting foreign knowledge and the supply and recruitment of skills across borders in Asia and the Pacific. Policymakers will also find useful the discussions of policy implications and the menu of issues requiring intergovernmental cooperation within the Asian region.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Table of Contents
• List of figures
• List of tables
• List of contributors
• Preface
• List of abbreviations
• 1. Human capital formation and growth: microeconomic dimensions
• 2. The skills of ‘Tigers’
• 3. Investment in human capital accumulation and growth: analyzing policy effectiveness
• 4. Human capital in Japan’s demographic transition: implications for other Asian countries
• 5. Higher education financing and inequality: the critical role of student loan scheme design – illustrations from Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand
• 6. The changing demand for human capital at China’s new stage of development
• 7. Human capital and Indonesia’s economic development
• 8. Human capital development and economic growth in Malaysia and Thailand: stuck in the middle?
• 9. Knowledge diffusion through good knowledge governance: the case of Singapore’s marine cluster
• 10. The quest for foreign skills: international recruitment strategies in the Asia–Pacific region
• 11. Regional cooperation in education: issues for developing countries in the Asia–Pacific region
• Index