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Under pressure: states in the global era
13/02/2008 By Laura Tedesco
The construction of legitimate and effective states has become a centrepiece of international policy since the end of the Cold War. Borrowing from models in the industrialised world as well as successful examples of development from Asia and Latin America, multilateral organisations and national governments in Europe and North America have prescribed public state reforms, democratic institutions and integration in the global economy as the universal bases for progress and stability.
Yet in spite of this new standardised version of statehood, the contexts and performances of national public authorities appear to be more divergent than ever. In the developed world, public fear has focused on the loss of state control over basic economic levers caused by globalisation and epitomised by a supposed "race to the bottom" in welfare state provision, taxation and labour regulations.
In emerging countries, such as China, Brazil and Russia, the trend has been towards greater state power through managed capitalist development and a tough defence of sovereign prerogatives, even as societies grow more fractious.
But it is in the world's fragile states that the greatest troubles are to be found. In much of sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, South Asia and the Andes, state authorities have remained self-absorbed, ineffective or predatory, ruling over societies without being able to spur growth, reduce poverty or secure a modicum of social justice.
Many of these countries have endured years of civil conflict, from which they have not yet recovered. Other are victims of crime waves, terror campaigns, ethnic divisions or simmering public discontent.
Based on discussions held over two days between a group of over 25 international experts in Madrid, this report explores some of the central issues of state construction and consolidation in the developing world in the context of economic, political and cultural globalisation.
The first sections analyses theories on the state, globalisation, and the relation between the state and political life. The second section moves on to the relation between the state and economic trends, with a particular emphasis on the role of state capacity and democracy in enabling a state to capture the possible benefits of globalisation.
Lastly, the third section dissects the new international agenda of state-building (particularly with regard to "stateless" societies), the reality of democracy in highly unequal societies, and the new global trends that challenge the vision of universal Weberian statehood.
In conclusion, the report points to the primacy of domestic political and social processes in bringing about the construction of effective governance.
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Keywords
Asia Conflict Democracy European Union Fragile state Globalization Governance Latin America & Caribbean State building Sub-Saharan AfricaRelated publications
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- Organized Crime, the State, and Democracy: the cases of Central America and the Caribbean
- The Failure and Collapse of the African State: on the Example of Nigeria
- Transition and legitimacy in African States: the cases of Somalia and Uganda
Bio author: Laura Tedesco
PhD from Warwick University. She is now Visiting Professor at the Department of Political Science Department of the University Autónoma of Madrid.
