Growth and development

The issue of growth in relation to development is now firmly back on the agenda of development policymakers.

It is emerging as a cornerstone of the UK government’s development policy; the EU is orientating its development policy and practice in this direction and the G20’s approach to development is directly and strongly informed by its overall focus on economic growth.

Discussion paper

Including a foreword by Neil McCulloch (IDS), Bond's discussion paper on the issue seeks to inform the discussions on how such a focus on growth could deliver development outcomes.

The paper explores the evidence of the link between economic growth and development outcomes and critiques the orthodox measure of growth, GDP. It also highlights the limitations of GDP and presents a range of alternative indicators that could inform better decision-making. Finally, it makes recommendations to policymakers about how this approach to growth could deliver inclusive and sustainable development.

For more information, please contact Bond International Advocacy Officer, Joanna Rea, jrea@bond.org.uk or +44 (0) 20 7250 0255.

Bond event, March 2011

What does a focus on growth mean for development and how should civil society respond?

These questions were explored at a Bond event on 22 March 2011. Forty-five Bond members came together to hear a variety of perspectives and to discuss the issues.

Growth and development event

Malcolm Ridout, Team Leader of the DFID Growth and Resilience Team presented the UK perspective:

Read DFID's presentation (PowerPoint download)

Sven Kuhn Von Burgsdorff, Head of the Forward Looking Studies and Policy Coherence UNIT of the European Commission's DG DEVCO presented the European perspective, with a particular focus on the EC green paper consultation process: