The Global Center for Economic Growth is a joint initiative between the University of Chicago and the World Bank, dedicated to fostering sustainable and inclusive economic development worldwide. This unique collaboration combines the academic rigor of UChicago with the practical expertise of the World Bank to address global economic challenges through innovative research, data-driven insights, and scalable solutions.
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According to the World Bank, middle-income countries are home to 75% 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.
The Growth Academy
help middle-income countries have opportunities to overcome challenges like debt, demographic shifts, and trade barriers to drive sustainable growth.
Our courses
help middle-income countries have opportunities to overcome challenges like debt, demographic shifts, and trade barriers to drive sustainable growth.
Through education
and innovation, The Growth Academy helps policymakers and researchers from middle-income countries address economic challenges.
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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.