A new perspective on the role of the government in economic development: Coordination under uncertainty Available to Purchase

Provides a new perspective on the role of the government in economic affairs. Utilising recent advances in the evolutionary theories of the firm, the coordination function of the government is emphasised. This paper argues that the government possesses certain unique features that allow it to restrict competition, and provide stable and reliable conditions under which firms organise, compete, cooperate and exchange. The coordinating perspective is employed to re‐examine the arguments for industrial policies regarding private investment decisions, market competition, diffusion of technologies and tariff protection on infant industries. This paper concludes that dynamic private enterprises assisted by government coordination policies explains the rapid economic growths in post‐war Japan and the Asian newly industrialising economies.