16 April, 2007
Botswana among 11 countries/territories with sustained high economic growth rate.

Article from FinFacts Ireland online Business and Financial Portal.

In the article below Botswana is identified as being among the 11 countries or territories in the world that enjoyed "high", i.e. over 7%, sustained growth over the last 25 years.

The 11 countries or territories that have been identified as the world's sustained high performers are, in alphabetical order: Botswana, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Malta, Oman, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand. Except for Botswana and Malta all of the countries or territories are in Asia.

[Start of Article]

"Growth Miracles: China and 10 other countries had the best 25 year performances of export-driven high economic growth; Challenge for Ireland to retune Celtic Tiger as exports falter" By Michael Hennigan, Editor and Founder of Finfacts:

Dr. Michael Spence, a winner of the 2001 Nobel Prize in Economics and Chairman of the Commission on Growth and Development, says that sustained high growth in developing economies is a recent, post-World War II phenomenon. Using GDP figures, "high" is above 7% and "sustained" is over 25 years or more. He says that these cut offs are arbitrary, but a similar picture emerges with variants. Growth at these rates produces very substantial changes in incomes and wealth: Income doubles every decade at 7%.

There are 11 such cases of sustained high growth, and eight are in Asia. These are Botswana, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Malta, Oman, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand.

Each and every one of these miracles had an export sector as a driver of growth and an increasing share of trade in GDP. There are no exceptions. Every growth miracle involves leveraging the demand and resources of the global economy... (Full article @ http://www.finfacts.com/irelandbusinessnews/publish/article_10009695.shtml)