Two Hundred Years of Colombian Economic Growth: The Role of TFP

Abstract

Using modern growth theory, we estimate Colombian total-factor productivity relative to the United Kingdom’s for the last 200 years in order to match observed income differences. Our results show Colombia’s remarkably inefficient use of technology relative to a country that is a leader in this regard and provide quantitative estimates of the proximate causes of relative income differences between the two economies.Long-run growth, total factor productivity, industrialization, Colombia, relative income differences