Does a Leapfrogging Growth Strategy Raise Growth Rate? Some International Evidence

Openness to trade is a hallmark of the Asian Growth Model, with empirical evidence supporting its importance for the high growth rates in the region. Another aspect of the Asian Growth Model is a leapfrogging strategy – the use of policies to guide the industrial structural transformation ahead of a country's factor endowment. Does it work? Opinions vary but the evidence is scarce in part because it is more difficult to measure the degree of leapfrogging than the extent of trade openness. We undertake a systematic look at the evidence both across countries and across regions within a large Asian economy to assess the efficacy of such a strategy. There is no strong and robust evidence that this strategy works reliably.