Barcelona Development Agenda

Barcelona Development Agenda

Introduction

The Barcelona Development Agenda is a statement of development principles formulated as a response to the prevailing Washington Consensus development model. Resulting from the collaboration of economists from both developing and developed countries at the 2004 Universal Forum of Cultures in Barcelona, Spain, the Barcelona Development Agenda outlines seven lessons learned from previous policy failures and successes, and presents them as priorities for future economic reforms. The principles emphasize a balance of market and government economic roles, flexible economic tools, and an increased role for sustainability and equity in governance.

Source of BDA – Forum Barcelona 2004 2004 Universal Forum of Cultures

Opening statement of BDA: 

“We, a group of economists from developing and developed countries, met in Barcelona on September 24 and 25, 2004 to consider the prospects for growth and development around the world. We discussed the effect of economic reforms adopted by many developing nations over the last two decades, the lessons for economic policymaking that emerge from this experience, and the performance of the international economic system into which poor and middle-income countries are increasingly integrated.”

- Three encouraging trends

• Gains in human rights

• Growth in several countries that can potentially pull millions out of poverty

• Increasing recognition of the importance of macroeconomic stability

- Three reasons for concern

• Recurrence and severity of systemic financial crises affecting developing states

later

• Mediocre record of economic reforms igniting growth in many regions

later

• Persistence and widening of distributional inequalities in many developing states

later

- Seven sets of lessons as seven priorities for reform

1. Institutional quality (respect of law and property rights) plus market orientation (with balance between market and state) and distribution of income are at root of successful development strategies
2. Large public and private debt, poorly regulated financial institutions, and loose monetary policies are serious hindrances to development
3. No single set of policies can be guaranteed to ignite growth
4. Multilateral trade negotiations should proceed in a manner that promotes development.
5. International financial arrangements are not working well.
6. Current international arrangements deal with movements of capital and labor asymmetrically.
7. Environmental issues need to be addressed with sustainable development policies at both national and global levels.

References

• The Washington Consensus Reconsidered: Towards a New Global Governance. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. 2008. ISBN 978-0-19-953408-1. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |authors= ignored (help)