There are many benefits to economic development. Not only does it improve the quality of products, but it can also reduce the price, increasing the local economy. In addition, economic growth helps create social equality and protect local economies from economic downturns, just like one of the objectives of the Southeast Volusia Manufacturing and Technology Coalition. Economic development is worth your attention if you’re considering starting a business.
Economic Development Results in Economic Growth
It is often argued that global development has sparked the recent financial crisis, which only highlighted the negative aspects of previous trends and shaped prospects. While this is undoubtedly true, economic development aims to keep a region sustainable and will study the symptoms of depletion of natural resources and make course corrections where appropriate.
It Promotes Social Equality
Equality of opportunity is one of the cornerstones of sustainable economic development. In developing countries, gender disparity is often the greatest, but the gap has narrowed rapidly between rich and developing nations. While the gap between males and females has decreased significantly over the past decade, it persists in poor communities. Economic development has long been the answer to social equality, but it must be done in the most sustainable way possible.
It Protects The Local Economy From Economic Downturns
The Economic Development Administration’s (EDA) mission is to promote community economic development. The agency works with urban and rural communities to promote the growth and prosperity of a region. Its work is critical to U.S. competitiveness and crucial to our national economic policy. Specifically, the agency assists local governments experiencing economic downturns and helps those regions regain their financial footing.
Many local leaders are taking a holistic approach to local economic development. Instead of focusing on incentives to attract businesses, they prioritize other measures to improve quality of life. One example is investing in public infrastructure and revitalization.
Reduces Inequality
The pattern of taxes and ownership of property determines income distribution, and policies that provide public goods positively affect overall economic inequality. These policies can increase a country’s income while leaving more revenue to invest in other goods.
One of the critical ways that economic development reduces inequality is by increasing social mobility. Therefore, economic development policies should be broadly universal and pay special attention to the needs of the most disadvantaged groups. Such policies include increased duty-free treatment for exports from developing countries and a more significant vote for developing nations in the IMF.
Promotes Resiliency to Disasters
By investing in resilience, countries can reduce their vulnerability to disasters and maximize the benefits of recovery efforts. Resiliency is the capacity to anticipate, absorb and recover from adverse events. This enhanced ability allows for better planning and anticipation of disasters, which reduces disaster losses.
In addition to addressing specific hazard risks, government agencies can facilitate economic resilience by promoting the development of resiliency infrastructure. For example, these agencies can provide resources for disaster risk financing and other development activities. These agencies can also assist in identifying climate assessments, floodplain risks, and hazardous materials facilities.
Improves the Well-being of People
There are four pillars of the economy of well-being. Education is one of these pillars and is a crucial driver of long-term economic growth. More education means more money and the return on investment from additional education doubles when health and employment benefits are considered. Furthermore, economic growth will lead to improved health, social inclusion, and environmental health. In addition, a well-developed society has less poverty and inequality.
While economists have long argued that economic development improves the well-being of people, this theory has been challenged by other research.