The Hidden Engine of Growth: When Purpose Powers the Solow Residual
![empty formal interior, natural lighting through tall windows, wood paneling, institutional architecture, sense of history and permanence, marble columns, high ceilings, formal furniture, muted palette, an abandoned legislative chamber, polished oak tables covered in dust and scattered papers, one sunlit blueprint at the center showing a faded diagram of a rising factory skyline, morning light streaming through tall arched windows, silence and weight of unrealized potential in the air [Bria Fibo]](https://081x4rbriqin1aej.public.blob.vercel-storage.com/viral-images/d8592a45-8346-489f-a6a7-285ddc7c465e_viral_2_square.png "empty formal interior, natural lighting through tall windows, wood paneling, institutional architecture, sense of history and permanence, marble columns, high ceilings, formal furniture, muted palette, an abandoned legislative chamber, polished oak tables covered in dust and scattered papers, one sunlit blueprint at the center showing a faded diagram of a rising factory skyline, morning light streaming through tall arched windows, silence and weight of unrealized potential in the air [Bria Fibo]")
The most enduring public transformations never began with new levers, but with shared purpose. When institutions fail to articulate why effort matters, even well-designed systems stagnate.
What if the true driver of economic miracles has never been policy alone, but the story behind the policy? In 1950s Japan, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry didn't just coordinate industry—it sold a vision: national redemption through quality and export excellence. In post-apartheid South Africa, the Reconstruction and Development Programme failed not only in execution but in narrative—it lacked a compelling 'why' to mobilize the masses. The lesson echoes through time: when people believe they are building something that matters, they innovate with greater intensity, cooperate more readily, and endure setbacks with resilience. Bustos’ work suggests the Solow residual might finally be giving up its secret—not as a measure of technical efficiency, but as the economic footprint of human meaning. And if that’s true, then the most powerful lever for growth isn’t in the central bank, but in the collective imagination.
—Sir Edward Pemberton
Published February 15, 2026