Economics of development

Course objectives

The course offers a general overview of the main issues related to the causes and determinants of economic development, underdevelopment, poverty analysis, causes of socio-economic inequalities, globalization patterns, with a particula attention to the analysis of poverty and its measures. At the end of the course students will be able to know the main issues of development economics and to read and understand the main documents and anlysis of national and international organization: such as World bank, IMF, OECD, EU, etc..

Channel 1
WALTER PATERNESI MELONI Lecturers' profile

Program - Frequency - Exams

Course program
The course provides a general introduction to the themes, tools, and policies for economic development. The main topics of development economics will be examined, including the characteristics of less developed countries, their peculiarities in terms of the functioning of the economic system, the analysis of the determinants of development and the necessary preconditions, the causes and characteristics of economic and social inequalities, and the implications of the globalization of markets. By the end of the course, students will have acquired the concepts and tools specific to the discipline that are useful for reading, interpreting, and deepening the topics of economic and social development. They will also be able to understand the analyses contained in the programmatic documents of the main national development organizations/agencies (e.g., Ministry of Economy, Agency for Territorial Cohesion) and international organizations/agencies (e.g., World Bank, IMF, OECD, EU, FAO). Nota 1: il corso di “Economia internazionale” (opzionale, codice 98431, 9 CFU, Corso di Laurea Magistrale in Giurisprudenza, LMG/01) mutua questo insegnamento, erogato nell’ambito della L-37 (CORIS). Gli studenti della LMG/01 interessati a sostenere questo esame sono pregati di mettersi in contatto con il docente. Nota 2: dall’A.A. 2027/2028 cambierà denominazione in “Economia globale e diseguaglianza” (si veda Didattica Programmata 2025-26, manifesto terzo anno).
Prerequisites
Solid knowledge of the content of the Economics course.
Books
Missaglia, M., Vaggi, G. (2022). Introduzione all'economia dello sviluppo. Crescita, sostenibilità e cooperazione nel XXI secolo (edizione ottobre 2022). Carocci. ISBN: 9788829012428.
Frequency
Attendance is not mandatory but strongly recommended.
Exam mode
The assessment of learning is based on passing a written exam and an oral examination. The written exam may include questions that also require graphical representations. For attending students, there will be intermediate tests, the successful completion of which will be equivalent to passing the final exam.
Lesson mode
In-class lectures and case studies
  • Lesson code98422
  • Academic year2025/2026
  • CourseInternational cooperation and development
  • CurriculumSingle curriculum
  • Year3rd year
  • Semester2nd semester
  • SSDSECS-P/01
  • CFU9
  • Subject areacooperazione e sviluppo