The developmental leader

Abstract

The role of the leader in economic development and in the formation of the developmental state is overlooked in the standard development economics literature. The developmental state is a state with adequate ‘state capacity’ to achieve successful policy design and implementation to reach developmental objectives. Developmental leaders have played an important role in the formation and administration of the developmental state, which has driven East Asian industrialisation and economic development. In contrast to standard political leaders, including populists, developmental leaders have envisioned, ignited and then administered successful economic development processes. In this study, we introduce and discuss the notion of the developmental leader (primarily in East Asia) through a selective theoretical and empirical analysis of developmental leaders.