Mineral Resources and Economic Development
Article from: OGEL Archive issue , in Roundup of Articles
Abstract
Recent studies assert that natural resource abundance (particularly minerals) has adverse consequences for economic growth. This paper subjects this "resource curse" hypothesis to critical scrutiny. Our central point is that it is inappropriate to equate development of mineral resources with terms such as "windfalls" and "booms." Contrary to the view of mineral production as mere depletion of a fixed natural "endowment," we show that so-called "nonrenewable" resources have been progressively extended through exploration, technological progress, and advances in appropriate (often ...