Growth Academy 2024
Chicago, IL USA
Featured Speakers
Panel Discussion
Featuring: Indermit Gil (Chief Economist of the World Bank) + Philippe Aghion (Collège de France, INSEAD, and the London School of Economics). Moderated by: Ufuk Akcigit (University of Chicago).
Somik V. Lall
Senior Adviser to the Chief Economist of the World Bank
The World Bank Group
“The Middle Income Trap“ (Video) & “Energy, Emissions, and Creative Destruction” (Slides)
Maria Marta Ferreyra
Senior Economist
The World Bank Group
“Education for Innovation and Growth” (Video)
Josh Lerner
Jacob H. Schiff Professor of Investment Banking
Harvard Business School
“Growing Enterpreneruial Clusters” (Slides)
Indermit Gill
Chief Economist of the World Bank Group and Senior Vice President for Development Economics
The World Bank Group
“The Middle Income Trap” (Slides)
Philippe Aghion
Collège de France, INSEAD, and the London School of Economics
“The Power of Creative Destruction“ (Slides)
Fabrizio Zilibotti
Tuntex Professor of International and Development Economics
Yale University
“Creative Destruction and
Distance to Frontier: Implications for Emerging Economies” (Slides)
Chad Syverson
George C. Tiao Distinguished Service Professor
The University of Chicago
“Productivity and Reallocation” (Sides)
Norman Loayza
Director; Global Indicators Group; Development Economics
The World Bank Group
“Economic Growth Through Productivity, Transformation and Resilience: A Practitioners’ Perspective“ (Video)
Ekaterina Vostroknutova
Lead Economist, Macroeconomics, Trade and Investment Global Practice
The World Bank Group
“Policies to Promote Enterprise and Discipline Incumbents“ (Video)
Forhad Shilpi
Senior Economist; Development Economics
The World Bank Group
“Strengthening creation and weakening preservation: Social mobility and talent development in MICs” (Video)
William Maloney
Chief Economist; Latin America and Caribbean
The World Bank Group
Tatjana Kleinberg
Economist; Development Economics Vice-Presidency
The World Bank Group
“Allocating Talent Efficiently to Unlock Economic Development” (Video)
Roberto N. Fattal Jaef
Senior Economist: Development Economics
The World Bank Group
“Distortions and Firm Dynamics in Middle-Income Countries“ (Video)
Franziska Ohnsorge
Chief Economist, South Asia Region
The World Bank Group
“Growth Challenges in South Asia” (Video)
Andrew Toole
Chief Economist
United States Patent and Trademark Office
Maria Vagliasindi
Lead Economist, Infrastructure Vice-Presidency
The World Bank Group
“Challenges & Opportunities of the Energy Transition for Middle Income Countries” (Video)
Katherine Stapleton
Economist; Macroeconomics, Trade and Investment Global Practice
The World Bank Group
Growth Academy
According to the World Bank, middle-income countries are home to 75 percent of the global population and account for nearly one-third of the global GDP. Since the 1990s, they have made significant progress in reducing poverty, creating the impression that growth continues to be on a robust trajectory for the future. Yet, a closer look at their track record reveals a more nuanced picture: more than 100 middle-income countries aim to make it to the high-income bracket in the next few decades, but only a small fraction of the population in middle-income countries has successfully transitioned to high-income status in recent years, indicating a difficult path ahead.
Today, the situation in middle-income countries is more complex than ever. With rising debt, declining populations, and trade barriers from developed nations, the challenges are mounting. The urgent need to transition to clean energy further limits growth opportunities. For the nearly 6 billion people living in these countries, the goal of reaching high-income status in a generation or two is becoming increasingly difficult, with their GDP per capita still significantly below that of the United States.
Economic growth is a challenging journey for any nation, yet growth is slower, different, and harder for middle-income countries. Given the challenges, how can these countries break free from the middle-income trap? From investing in education, talent allocation, institutional reforms, and sustainable energy policies, how should policymakers shape their agenda based on their country’s unique growth path? What should policymakers do to overcome the challenges along the way?
Hosted by the University of Chicago and the World Bank, the Growth Academy offers a unique and interactive learning environment to tackle these pressing questions. This two-week transformative summer school, in its inaugural year, is specifically designed for researchers and policymakers from middle-income countries. It will serve as a gateway to cutting-edge insights from leading experts in the field, with participants from more than two dozen countries attending this exclusive program.
The program is divided between the University of Chicago and the World Bank Headquarters in Washington, D.C. This unique setup allows participants to spend one week at each venue, providing the opportunity to directly engage with distinguished academics, including Nobel laureates, and prominent World Bank researchers.
This year, the Growth Academy curriculum will also foster interactive discussions about the key findings of the World Development Report 2024, the flagship publication of the World Bank that focuses on implementing effective and sustainable growth policies in middle-income countries through creative destruction.
Building on the report’s insights, the Academy aims to equip its participants with innovative perspectives on economic development in middle-income countries. The program’s goal is to lay the foundation for a global collaborative network of researchers, academics, and practitioners for the continuous exchange of ideas long after the Academy concludes.
Economic growth is a challenging journey for any nation, yet growth is slower, different, and harder for middle-income countries. Given the challenges, how can these countries break free from the middle-income trap? From investing in education, talent allocation, institutional reforms, and sustainable energy policies, how should policymakers shape their agenda based on their country’s unique growth path? What should policymakers do to overcome the challenges along the way?
Hosted by the University of Chicago and the World Bank, the Growth Academy offers a unique and interactive learning environment to tackle these pressing questions. This two-week transformative summer school, in its inaugural year, is specifically designed for researchers and policymakers from middle-income countries. It will serve as a gateway to cutting-edge insights from leading experts in the field, with participants from more than two dozen countries attending this exclusive program.
The program is divided between the University of Chicago and the World Bank Headquarters in Washington, D.C. This unique setup allows participants to spend one week at each venue, providing the opportunity to directly engage with distinguished academics, including Nobel laureates, and prominent World Bank researchers.
This year, the Growth Academy curriculum will also foster interactive discussions about the key findings of the World Development Report 2024, the flagship publication of the World Bank that focuses on implementing effective and sustainable growth policies in middle-income countries through creative destruction.
Building on the report’s insights, the Academy aims to equip its participants with innovative perspectives on economic development in middle-income countries. The program’s goal is to lay the foundation for a global collaborative network of researchers, academics, and practitioners for the continuous exchange of ideas long after the Academy concludes.
Countdown to Growth Academy 2025
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