ABSTRACT
The author of 'The Meaning of Development' could have taken the position that to use 'development' as a synonym for growth had so debased the word that it could no longer be used by honest people. The time is indeed ripe for another critical look at the meaning of development. 'Development' still carried much goodwill and political force; besides it had been incorporated in the titles of research institutes and international and national agencies. On this approach, 'development plans' would hence forward not put the main emphasis on overall growth rates, or even on new patterns of distribution. The door would, moreover, be opened for the transfer of theories and experience from 'developing' to 'developed' countries, a possibility merely hinted at in 'The Meaning of Development'. The simple step of redefining development in this way is thus not by any means purely semantic: it changes one's whole perception of the world.
