Harvard In

Notes

•Harvard Institute for International Development Development Discussion Papers Series Economic Growth in Central America: Evolution of Productivity in Manufacturing Edgar Robles Development Discussion Paper No. 749 February 2000 © Copyright 2000 Edgar Robles and President and Fellows of Harvard College •Introduction Research on the determinants of economic growth in the five small Central American countries has been limited. Covering a territory from 49,998 square miles in Nicaragua to 8,124 in El Salvador, with a combined population of nearly 40 million, these countries developed very differently over the past four decades. Nicaragua is rebuilding after eleven years under a dictatorial Sandinista regime threatened by outside revolutionary groups. El Salvador ended a civil war in 1992, with remarkable economic recovery since. Guatemala signed a peace accord in 1996, ending a 36-year civil war. Honduras has been slow to adapt to international trends, with the old elite resisting modernization of social, economic, and political structures. Despite these challenges, most countries have stabilized politically and reestablished democracy. They have also made significant effort...