The 2024 Nobel Prize in Economics was announced on Monday, October 14th, with three American scholars sharing the honor. Their research has helped explain why some countries become wealthy while others remain poor.
The recipients of the award are Simon Johnson, James Robinson, and Daron Acemoglu, all of whom are of English and Turkish descent living in the United States.
Johnson and Acemoglu are professors at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), while Robinson serves as the director of the Pearson Institute for the Study and Resolution of Global Conflicts at the University of Chicago.
The Nobel Committee praised the scholars for explaining why societies with poor rule of law and exploitative institutions do not lead to economic growth or improvement.
Jacob Svensson, the chairman of the Economic Sciences Prize Committee, stated, “Reducing the significant income disparities between nations is one of the greatest challenges of our time.” He further expressed during a press conference, “They have identified the historical roots of the weak institutional environment in many low-income countries today.”
Over time, countries that have developed inclusive systems to uphold the rule of law and property rights have prospered, while those with extractive systems — as described by the laureates, siphoning resources to benefit the elites from a broader population — have continued to experience low economic growth.
Acemoglu also warned during the Nobel press conference that data collected by pro-democracy groups indicates the weakening of public institutions and the rule of law in many regions worldwide.
The Nobel Prize in Economics carries a monetary award of 11 million Swedish Krona (1.1 million USD), which will be shared among the three laureates this year.
Just a day before the award was presented, a report by the World Bank revealed that the debt levels of the 26 poorest countries in the world are higher than at any point since 2006.
Since its establishment, the Nobel Prize in Economics has largely been dominated by American scholars, and in the scientific fields of the 2024 awardees announced last week, American researchers also held a significant portion.
(This article is based on reports from Reuters and CNN)