Premium
THE RESOURCE CURSE THESIS: MINERALS IN BOLIVIAN DEVELOPMENT, 1970–90
Author(s) -
Auty R.M.
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
singapore journal of tropical geography
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.538
H-Index - 42
eISSN - 1467-9493
pISSN - 0129-7619
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-9493.1994.tb00055.x
Subject(s) - resource curse , curse , diversification (marketing strategy) , boom , economics , natural resource , natural resource economics , mineral resource classification , resource (disambiguation) , development economics , economic system , business , ecology , geology , biology , sociology , geochemistry , computer network , marketing , anthropology , computer science , oceanography
Rich natural resource endowments like minerals often prove to be a curse. This is because they raise over‐optimistic expectations that lead to lax economic policies which in turn retard the competitive diversification needed to sustain rapid economic growth. A clear example is provided by Bolivia during the 1974–78 and 1979–81 mineral booms. But Bolivia also shows a corollary of the resource curse thesis: in adversity (the hyperinflation and mineral price falls of the mid‐19809, tough but necessary reforms may emerge. Bolivia now needs to accelerate the re‐orientation of its economy towards the tropical lowlands.