Learning objectives
At the end of the course, you will be able to:
• Critically evaluate applied international trade and investment theories and stylized facts in the context of sustainable development and communicate this assessment effectively.
• Understand the most influential theoretical and applied tools of international trade and investment for developing countries and emerging economies.
• Apply basic and advanced analytical and empirical tools of trade and investment to inform national and international development policy analysis.
• Extend theories and empirics to address new and emerging topics beyond the settings already covered in the course reflecting its interdisciplinary nature.
Course description
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development recognizes international trade as an engine for inclusive economic growth and poverty reduction, and as an important means to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This course is aimed at giving students a thorough understanding of the key theoretical foundations and policy debates in international trade and investment for sustainable development. The focus will be on research-led policy-relevant approaches that enable students to better understand national, bilateral, and multilateral cooperation as well as policies for sustainable
development. In a hands-on setting during workshops, you will learn to apply basic tools (e.g., Revealed Comparative Advantage, Grubel Lloyd, Value Added versus Gross Trade) and advanced techniques (micro-data panel analysis of export premium, partial equilibrium with structural Gravity). The policy negotiation game offers a simulation of an official international meeting. You will fully experience and experiment with evaluations of trade and investment policies, including the topics covered by guest lecturers on the impact of free trade agreements, subsidies, sanctions, foreign investment, institutional qualities, the COVID-19 pandemics. The course includes study visit to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or CPB – Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis.
Upon completion, you will have a good understanding of international trade and investment theories and up-to-date knowledge about topical developments in the world economy and their consequences on issues related to developing countries and SDGs. You will be able to analyse the determinants and impact of trade and investment, evaluate the impact of trade and investment on (sustainable) development, and to provide evidence-based policy advice that fits in development strategies.
Pre-requisites:
The course requires basic knowledge of Microsoft Excel through the test provided by European Computer Driving License (ECDL) or ISS-9206 (Microsoft Excel Applications for Development Studies).
Knowledge of the statistical software STATA as a tool for handling data as well as carrying out empirical analysis is a plus.
| Policy negotiation game (30%), take home assignment (50%), critical article reviews and presentation (20%) |
Indicative videos and readings
• Gravity model in international trade: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jf0hWQIxbtw
• Deglobalization 2.0: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19S3i9M_iWg
• Policy negotiation game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oO93LBns7os
Demena, B.A., and van Bergeijk, P.A.G., (Eds.) (forthcoming 2021). Trade and Investment in East Africa: Prospects, Challenges and Pathways to Sustainability. Springer. This is a work-in-progress with Springer to compile our current Tradecom project with REPOA into an edited volume under a special issue – Frontiers in African Business Research.
Demena, B.A., 2017. Essays on Intra-Industry Spillovers from FDI in Developing Countries: A firm-level analysis with a focus on Sub-Saharan Africa. PhD. Dissertation, Erasmus University, ISS, The Hague, The Netherlands
Yakop, Mina, and van Bergeijk, P.A.G., (2011). Economic diplomacy, trade and developing countries. Cambridge Journal of
Regions, Economy and Society 4.2 (2011): 253-267
