A FIVE YEAR PLAN FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Over the past thirty years, incomes in the countries with the richest twenty percent of the world's population grew nearly three times faster than in those countries with the poorest twenty percent (Apodaca, 205). That gap is widening. Our country, while not a member of the poorest nations, does stand below the fiftieth percentile and must take strong action in the next five years in order to allow the nation to compete successfully as a member of the world economy.
After a year during which unexpected weakness in global activity was exacerbated by the terrible events of September 11 and their aftermath, the world economy remains subdued and the outlook is still uncertain. There are still reasons for cautious optimism, however. For example, industrial production appears to have bottomed out in a number of countries, confidence is stabilizing, and global financial markets have strengthened. It is reasonable to expect that the global recovery will gradually take hold and spread as the year progresses, first in the United States, and then Europe, and then the rest of the world. Our country must find a way to participate in this hoped-for recovery and new growth.
Meantime, the environment for emerging economies remains less supportive than it was: the demand for exports is weaker, and the supply of capital is less reliable. This makes it all the more important that we take the right steps now to boost long term growth, and to fulfill our economic potential.
Renewing the momentum of reform, and thereby broadening and reviving growth, is essential if we are to achieve the economic imperative of breaking out of the third world. As outlined by the Planning Commission, it will take growth rates of 8 9 percent over the next decade to reduce the poverty rate to around 11 percent. Per capita income levels in China and many East Asian countries, which were roughly comparable to ours in th...