Development economics has an even greater scope. In addition to being
concerned with the efficient allocation of existing scarce (or idle) productive
resources and with their sustained growth over time, it must also deal with
the economic, social, political, and institutional mechanisms, both public and
private, necessary to bring about rapid (at least by historical standards) and
large-scale improvements in levels of living for the peoples of Africa, Asia, Latin
America, and the formerly socialist transition economies. Unlike the more
developed countries (MDCs), in the less developed countries, most commodity
and resource markets are highly imperfect, consumers and producers
have limited information, major structural changes are taking place in both
the society and the economy, the potential for multiple equilibria rather than
a single equilibrium is more common, and disequilibrium situations often
prevail (prices do not equate supply and demand). In many cases, economic
calculations are dominated by political and social priorities such as unifying
the nation, replacing foreign advisers with local decision makers, resolving
tribal or ethnic conflicts, or preserving religious and cultural traditions. At
the individual level, family, clan, religious, or tribal considerations may
take precedence over private, self-interested utility or profit-maximizing
calculations.