Abstract :
The present paper is a review of political economy on empirical evidence related to natural resource
rent and consequential economic prosperity where resource-rich countries reluctantly depend on their
respective resource rents and capitals. With the modern growing relevance of natural resource
abundance, dependence and capabilities toward regional economic prosperity, many resource-rich
countries experience less rapid growth than the resource-poor countries. The impacts of resource rents
towards their respective regional economy are the issue of severe concerns. As a result, this paper
critically examined the nexus of natural resource abundance, dependence, and capabilities in relation
to their respective regional economic prosperity relative to other regions of the world. The analysis
shows that it is common for natural resource rents to mob out physical and human development, thereby
slowing down economic growth. However, across resource-rich countries, heavy dependence on
natural resources influences resource dependence and can subsequently impair saving and direct
investment through slowing human capital growth and development. This study argued that
benchmarking rents on the basis of capabilities should be precedence instead of focusing on natural
resource abundance and dependence. The study also affirmed the assessments of natural resource rents
gap, weaknesses and competitive advantages in the global economic arena.
Keyword :
Natural Resource Economic Prosperity Human Development Resource Rent Resource Abundance Natural Resource Management