On the political economy of development and the contribution of services. This paper aims to ponder on recent approaches to Political Economy of Development, that bring about new concepts about the role of services activities in the economic development process. The analysis begins by checking the new attributions of services entailed by the productive paradigm changes that have occurred since the 1970's. Then, it examines the debate about the new kind of society, called "post-industrial", which is centered in the services dynamics. Finally, it discusses the relevance of social capital disponibility, as a prime factor to attain economic development
services; development; social capital; public policies; post-industrialism