Economic policy and economic growth

If economic policy strongly affects the long-run rate of growth, then the cumulative implications of such policy for human welfare are such as to dwarf most other economic issues. This article argues that per capita growth will take place only if the after-tax productivity of capital and the rate of saving are high enough to keep up with population growth. Since capital productivity is affected by economic policy, policy determines not only the level of growth, but whether growth takes place at all. The author offers a critical examination of the relative roles of culture, technological advances, and economic policies. -from Author