Interprovincial variation in economic growth in Canada

Abstract

In the present paper, the dynamic aspects of regional variations in the economic growth are examined. Over the three decades of the fifties, sixties and seventies, the growth pattern in different provinces of Canada has undergone significant changes. These changes are more or less in the same direction as one would expect in a capitalist economy (see, Dholakia, 1985). The contribution of worker rate in explaining the growth differentials considerably declined over time. Changes in the industrial structure and variations therein play a significant role on margin. However, unlike the case of the analysis of the regional differences in the levels of economic development where capital intensity (factor proportions) played the major role, in the case of the regional differentials in the rates of economic growth, capital productivity (technology) played a significant development, regional variations (disparities) are governed more by the pure technological factors than by the structure or the attitude of the people to work or the capital investments per se. The case of India examined with all limitations ont he data availability (see, Dholakia, 1985) corroborate these findings. This presents good potential for learning from Canadian experience for formulating regional policies in countries like India.