Abstract
FINANCE AND DEVELOPMENT
Title Page
FINANCE AND DEVELOPMENT
The Digital Future
MARCH 2021
Acemoglu on automation P.4
Africa goes digital P.18
Taxing tech P.54
Contents
Digitalization is transforming the economy —we should shape it in a way that benefits all.
THE DIGITAL FUTURE
Remaking the Post-COVID World
To reverse widening inequality, keep a tight rein on automation
Daron Acemoğlu
Let’s Build a Better Data Economy
Our digital footprint generates enormous value, but too much of it ends up in Big Tech silos
Yan Carrière-Swallow and Vikram Haksar
From Financial Innovation to Inclusion
For technology to benefit everyone, private sector innovation needs to be supported by public goods
Jon Frost, Leonardo Gambacorta, and Hyun Song Shin
Africa Goes Digital
In rebuilding after COVID-19, policymakers must invest in innovative technology to leapfrog obstacles to inclusive development
Cristina Duarte
Decoupling in the Digital Era
Absent multilateral cooperation, the global digital economy could splinter, and everyone would pay
Daniel Garcia-Macia and Rishi Goyal
The Global Cyber Threat
Cyber threats to the financial system are growing, and the global community must cooperate to protect it
Tim Maurer and Arthur Nelson
The New Morality of Debt
Increased datafication of debt raises ethical questions and calls for a new approach to regulating lending
Nikita Aggarwal
Digital Dollars for Online Tea
The Bahamas, Sri Lanka, and Uganda fight the pandemic’s disruption with innovation
Steven Dorst
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
Dear Mom, Forget the Cash
An IMF economist explains central bank digital currency to his mother
Tommaso Mancini-Grifoli
Rethinking Economics
The pandemic tests a new policymaking benchmark that includes civil society and social norms
Samuel Bowles and Wendy Carlin
Embracing the Gift of Global Talent
More equal opportunities can make us all better of
Ruchir Agarwal, Ina Ganguli, and Patrick Gaule
Taxing Tech
Digital services taxes take shape in the shadow of the pandemic
Rebecca Christie
Transformative Technology
The shift to a hyperconnected world presents a formidable opportunity— but also risks and challenges
Herve Tourpe
DEPARTMENTS
Straight Talk
Averting a Great Divergence
Exiting the pandemic with minimal scarring will require policy action on several fronts
Gita Gopinath
People in Economics
The Guru of Globalization
Prakash Loungani profles Tel Aviv University’s Assaf Razin, early scholar of the promise and perils of globalization
In the Trenches
Radical Inclusion
Sierra Leone’s David Sengeh is taking an inclusive approach to digitalizing the country’s education system and economy
Book Reviews
The Power of Creative Destruction: Economic Upheaval and the Wealth of Nations, Philippe Aghion, Céline Antonin, and Simon Bunel
The Data Detective: Ten Easy Rules to Make Sense of Statistics, Tim Harford
The Great Demographic Reversal: Ageing Societies, Waning Inequality, and an Inflation Revival, Charles Goodhart and Manoj Pradhan
Currency Notes
New Old Idea
Technological innovation is fueling the resurgence of community currencies
Andreas Adriano
