The Harrod Domar growth model was one of the first models in the new field of macroeconomics after World War 2 that attempted to explain why certain countries grew more than others. The model argued that the key to economic development was labor and capital goods, and that the limiting factor in the majority of countries was capital goods. Therefore, the model argued that the best method to improve human development was to direct investment targeted aid at developing countries.
Walther Rostow was the famous author of the novel called Stages of Economic Growth. It built upon the Harrod Domar model by explaining that investment improved the overall wealth of a country’s citizens, which in turn created new investments. It argued that there was a critical mass to investment that if reached, would quickly launch developing countries into first world living standards. Today, it is still the dominant model in determining aid.
Haile Sellasie was the last emperor of Ethiopia and in turn was the head of a totalitarian regime that Kopuscinki argued was the main contributor to the country’s economic stagnation. According to Kopuschinki’s book, Ethiopia’s feudal system of government actively encouraged a divide between the citizens and ruling class in order to maintain power, which resulted in the country’s natural resources being exploited to enhance the wealth of the elite rather than encourage human development. In my opinion, this narrative is partially true. While it is often the case that inherently unequal systems of government are forced to use it’s resources inefficently to maintain control over it’s population, institutional obstacles are only a part of why countries can fail to invest wisely. There are examples of repressive regimes succeeding in creating economic development, including China, Singapore and Vietnam.