Abstract
In 1900, Norway was among the poorer countries in Europe. According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Human Development Index (HDI), Norway is today among the countries that deliver the highest welfare to its population. The remarkable transition is the product of economic opportunities and political choices. The economic opportunities were provided by the vast natural resources. Norway initially exported timber and fish, and then developed industry based on hydroelectric power, before finally, from 1973 onwards, becoming a producer of oil and then natural gas.
Halvor Mehlum, Department of Economics, University of Oslo; Karl Moene, Department of Economics, University of Oslo; Ragnar Torvik, Department of Economics, Norwegian University of Science and Technology. We are grateful for comments from Katja Hujo and Thorvaldur Gylfason and the participants at the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) workshop on Social Policy in Mineral-Rich Countries held in Geneva, 24-5 April 2008. While carrying out this research, we have been associated with the ESOP center, supported by The Research Council of Norway, at the Department of Economics, University of Oslo. We have benefited from research assistance from Ingrid Kruger and Astrid Sandsør. Mehlum and Moene have also benefited from their affiliation with the Centre for the Study of Civil War at the Peace Research Institute in Oslo.
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Mehlum, H., Moene, K., Torvik, R. (2012). Mineral Rents and Social Development in Norway. In: Hujo, K. (eds) Mineral Rents and the Financing of Social Policy. Social Policy in a Development Context. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230370913_6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230370913_6
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