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Development Economics

Macro-Development: Concepts, Facts and Tools

Advanced Macroeconomic Tools for Analyzing Economic Development and Policy Impact

17.5h (5 days)

€775 - €1,375

Face to Face

English

Program date: July 14 - 18, 2025

Early bird deadline: April 15, 2025

Learn more

Macro-Development: Concepts, Facts and Tools

Applications for 2025 Summer School programs are now open!

Apply

Summer school

Development Economics

Macro-Development: Concepts, Facts and Tools

This course provides students with a comprehensive understanding of state-of-the-art macroeconomic techniques for analyzing economic development.

It also highlights key facts in macro development, focusing on new datasets and key measurement challenges.

Teaching Faculty

Interested in broadening your toolbox to analyze the process of economic development?

This course would suit individuals with the following background:

Researchers and professionals aiming to deepen their knowledge of the subject.
Graduate students aiming to position themselves in the frontier of macro-development research.

Understand state-of-the-art Macroeconomic Tools to understand complex development processes

Upon completion of the course, participants will:

Understand how standard macroeconomic models incorporate sectors, firms, preferences, technologies, and economic distortions.
Explore the aggregate effects of government policies on economic development using advanced macroeconomic techniques.
Characterize key stylized facts in macroeconomic development, emphasizing new datasets and measurement challenges.
Apply macroeconomic tools to real-world contexts, offering insights into specific development episodes and enabling the computation of policy counterfactuals.

Program Syllabus for Geospatial Tools for Development: Data and Inference

Here is an outline of the topics that will be discussed during the course:

Introduction to Economic Development, national accounts, and growth Theory Brush- up

National Accounts: concepts and definitions.
Main available datasets.
One sector Neoclassical growth model.
Cross-Country Income differences: Growth Accounting.

Putting the one-sector Neoclassical growth model to work: What factors determine growth?

Application to the Neoclassical growth model to particular development episodes.
Solving the Neoclassical growth model along the transition: shooting algorithms.
Using the framework to evaluate policy counterfactuals.

The multi-sector Neoclassical growth model: agriculture, industry, and services.

Structural transformation: Stylized facts and relevant concepts.
Main drivers of structural transformation: Applications to particular development episodes.
Different structural transformation across countries (e.g., how is Africa different from East Asia?).

The role of firms in economic development

Basic framework to think about misallocation of resources across firms.
Using the framework to decompose productivity growth over time.
Using the framework to calculate the effects of specific government policies.

The theory and empirics of Input-output tables: relevance and applications

Basic framework with input-output tables.
Measurement: Input-output tables across countries.
The roles of input-output linkages in the transmission of government policies.

List of References

The following texts will help you prepare for the course:

Articles and books

Acemoglu, D., and V. Guerrieri (2008): “Capital Deepening and Non-Balanced Eco- nomic Growth,” Journal of Political Economy, 116(3), 467–498.
Adamopoulos, T., and D. Restuccia (2014): “The Size Distribution of Farms and International Productivity Differences,” American Economic Review, 104(6), 1667– 1697.
Card, D., and J. E. DiNardo (2002): “Skill-Biased Technological Change and Rising Wage Inequality: Some Problems and Puzzles,” Journal of Labor Economics, 20(4), 733–783.
Caselli, F., and J. Feyrer (2007): “The Marginal Product of Capital,” Quarterly Journal of Economics, 535–568.
Caselli, F., and W. J. C. II (2006): “The World Technology Frontier,” American Economic Review, 96(3), 499–522.
Greenwood, J., Z. Hercowitz, and P. Krusell (1997): “Long-Run Implications of Investment-Specific Technological Change,” American Economic Review, 87(3), 342–362.
Greenwood, J., and P. Krusell (2006): “Growth accounting with investment-specific technological progress: A discussion of two approaches,” Journal of Monetary Economics, 54, 1300–1310.
Hall, R., and C. I. Jones (1999): “Why Do Some Countries Produce So Much More Output per Worker than Others?” Quarterly Journal of Economics, 114, 83–116.
Hsieh, C.-T., and P. J. Klenow (2007): “Relative Prices and Relative Prosperity,” American Economic Review, 97(3), 562–585.
Jones, C. I. (1994): “Economic Growth and the relative price of capital,” Journal of Monetary Economics, 34, 359–382.
Karabarbounis, L., and B. Neiman (2014): “The Global Decline of the Labor Share,” Quarterly Journal of Economics, pp. 61–103.
King, R. G., and S. T. Rebelo (1993): “Transitional Dynamics and Economic Growth in the Neoclassical Model,” American Economic Review, 83(4), 908– 931.
Krusell, P., L. E. Ohanian, J.-V. R ́ıos-Rull, and G. L. Violante (2000): “Capital-Skill Complementarity and Inequality: A Macroeconomic Analysis,” Econometrica, 68(5), 1029–1053.
Mankiw, N. (2010): Macroeconomics, 7th Edition. Worth Publishers, The Intermediate Level Textbook Also available as Macroeconomics and the Financial System, with Laurence Ball.
Mankiw, N. G., D. Romer, and D. N. Weil (1992): “A Contribution to the Empirics of Economic Growth,” Quarterly Journal of Economics, 408–437.
Ngai, L. R., and C. A. Pissarides (2007): “Structural Change in a Multisector Model of Growth,” American Economic Review, 97(1), 429–443.
Ngai, R., and R. M. Samaniego (2009): “Mapping prices into productivity in multi-sector growth models,” Journal of Economic Growth, 14, 183–204.
Piyabha Kongsamut, S. R., and D. Xie (2001): “Beyond Balanced Growth,” Review of Economic Studies, 68(4), 869–882.

Software / Hardware

Practical sessions will require students to bring their own computer to classes.

Why join our Summer School?

All BSE Summer courses are taught to the same high standard as our Master’s programs. Join us to:

1

Network with like-minded peers.

2

Study in vibrant Barcelona.

3

Learn from world-renowned faculty.

Admissions and requirements

Participants to BSE Summer School must check they are eligible to apply.

Program date: July 14 - 18, 2025

Early bird deadline: April 15, 2025

Requirements

Summer School applicants normally demonstrate one or more of the following:

A strong background in Economics or a field closely related to the course topic (Statistics, Law, etc.).
Postgraduate degree or current Master’s/PhD studies related to the course topic.
Relevant professional experience.

Requirements for Macro-Development: Concepts, Facts and Tools

Students are expected to have basic skills in economics, statistics, and computation coding.

Apply now

Schedule

Here is your schedule for this edition of BSE Macro-Development: Concepts, Facts and Tools course.

Time

14

mon

15

tue

16

wed

17

thu

18

fri

09:00 - 11:00

Lecture

14:30 - 16:00

Practical

Credit transfers (ECTS)

To be eligible for credit transfer, students must complete a final project.

Students must submit a short research proposal one week after the summer school ends. The proposal should be 3-4 pages, 1.5 spaced, font size 11, and include:

A clear research question.
Motivation, including the question’s policy relevance.
A discussion of existing literature and how your paper relates.

An explanation of your approach, detailing the empirical strategy and/or theoretical model. For more details please refer to the Summer School Admissions page.

Certificate of Attendance

Participants not interested in credit transfer will instead receive a Certificate of Attendance free of charge. These Participants will not be graded or assessed during the course.

Fees for 2025

Multiple course discounts are available, see more information about available discounts. Fees for courses in other Summer School programs may vary.

Course

Geospatial Tools for Development: Data and Inference

Complex Network Analysis: Tools for Economic Development

Randomized Control Trials (RCTs) in Development Economics

Macro-Development: Concepts, Facts and Tools

Regression Discontinuity Designs in Development Economics: Theory and Practice

Modality

Online

Face to Face

Total Hours

17.5

ECTS

1

Regular Fee

1,000€

1,375€

Reduced Fee*

600€

775€

FAQ’s

Need more information? Check out our FAQ section or contact our Admissions Team.

Is accommodation included in the course fee?

Accommodation is not included in the course fee. Participants are responsible for finding accommodation.

Are the sessions recorded?

Sessions will be recorded and videos will be available for a month once the course has finished.

How much does each Summer School course cost?

Fees for each course may vary. Please consult each course page for accurate information.

Are there any discounts available?

Yes, BSE offers a variety of discounts on its Summer School courses. See more information about available discounts or request a personalized discount quote by email.