Chang Ha-Joon Korean economist Date of Birth: 07.10.1963 Country: South Korea

Biography of Ha-Joon Chang

Ha-Joon Chang is a Korean economist and one of the leading global experts on developing economies. Currently, he lectures on the political economy of development at Cambridge University. Chang's extensive body of work includes several bestselling books among economists and political scientists such as "Kicking Away the Ladder: Development Strategy in Historical Perspective."

Chang has been consulted by representatives from the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, European Investment Bank, as well as various UN agencies, Oxfam International, and the Center for Economic and Policy Research. It is known that his work has had a significant influence on Rafael Correa, a prominent economist and the current president of Ecuador.

After completing his studies at Seoul National University, Chang went to Cambridge University to further his education. He began studying heterodox economics under the guidance of renowned British Marxist, Robert Rowthorn. Together, they developed the theory of industrial policy, which aimed to find a middle ground between unrestricted free markets and centrally planned economies based on rigid central planning.

In his unique approach to economics, Chang fundamentally reevaluated the role of economic history and socio-political factors in the development of economic methods. His most famous work, "Kicking Away the Ladder," earned him the Gunnar Myrdal Prize in 2003 from the European Association for Evolutionary Political Economy and the Vasily Leontief Prize in 2005 from the Global Development and Environment Institute for expanding the boundaries of economic thought.

In this book, Chang argued that all major developed countries became wealthy thanks to predatory policies and now hinder other countries from following their example by "kicking away the ladder" that led them to their current heights. He strongly criticized the WTO, World Bank, and International Monetary Fund, labeling them as the main "ladder kickers" and the main obstacle to eradicating poverty worldwide.

In December 2008, Chang released his book "Bad Samaritans: The Myth of Free Trade and the Secret History of Capitalism," which further developed the ideas initially presented in "Kicking Away the Ladder." In this book, Chang analyzed the international free market and demonstrated that such an approach rarely leads to positive economic development and can be significantly more harmful than armed invasion. He examined GDP growth patterns in developing countries and showed how external pressure and persistent demands for adopting international trade norms significantly reduce this growth. He also highlighted the failures of privatization and anti-inflationary measures in attempts to introduce a free market.

Chang's work is often confused with Paul Vallely's book "Bad Samaritans: First World Ethics and Third World Debt." While Vallely's work explores the political aspect of interactions between developing and developed countries, it shares some similarities with Chang's work.