A Political Economy Of Lebanon 1948 2002

This book is about the laissez-faire strategy for economic development, a strategy inspired by neoclassical/mainstream economics, advocated by the “Washington Consensus”, and implemented by the Bretton Woods institutions. Mainstream economics has taken legitimacy from the historical failure of command economies. But this view has not been balanced by an examination of the performance of laissez-faire economies, the closest to the pure market model. Lebanon provides a unique test case in this regard. The book assesses Lebanon’s development during 1948-2002, including its industrial and financial performance. The dynamics of the laissez-faire system is separately studied from a Post-Keynesian perspective, highlighting institutional behavior. It is found that laissez-faire is not a sufficient condition for economic development, and can even be counterproductive.

This study presents a comprehensive analysis of political developments in the aftermath of the Lebanese civil war. The author argues that despite the complexity of Lebanese society and a host of unresolved issues that triggered the civil war, Lebanese political discourse and political activity during the period under discussion (1990-2000) was dominated by a single issue: economic reconstruction. The author establishes the main reasons behind this and proceeds to render a penetrating analysis of the Lebanese political setting as it impinges on the reconstruction process.

This work examines the economic agents, institutions, incentives, competences and other forces that forged a Lebanese economic model known as the "Merchant Republic" in the aftermath of World War II. The author identifies the broad concept of outward-orientation to describe the Lebanese economy. Dominant economic and political agents sought to develop the economy on the basis of its intermediary role, regional comparative advantage and competitive position in offshore service operations - all of which were viewed as essential to the viability of the small Lebanese state. Supporting an open and tertiary-oriented economy that serviced rapidly-growing Middle East economies, these forces shaped Lebanon's economic order until 1958; and in a modified form, they influenced it's political economy until 1975. Lebanon's model of outward-orientation, however, can be usefully contrasted with the explorer-oriented industrialization model followed in East Asia. This book integrates a theoretical and empirical examination of the Lebanese model and provides data and analysis about its effect on economic growth and structural change during its golden age.

The debate about globalisation and its discontents

This book offers the first critical engagement with the political economy of the Middle East and North Africa. Challenging conventional wisdom on the origins and contemporary dynamics of capitalism in the region, these cutting-edge essays demonstrate how critical political economy can illuminate both historical and contemporary dynamics of the region and contribute to wider political economy debates from the vantage point of the Middle East. Leading scholars, representing several disciplines, contribute both thematic and country-specific analyses. Their writings critically examine major issues in political economy—notably, the mutual constitution of states, markets, and classes; the co-constitution of class, race, gender, and other forms of identity; varying modes of capital accumulation and the legal, political, and cultural forms of their regulation; relations among local, national, and global forms of capital, class, and culture; technopolitics; the role of war in the constitution of states and classes; and practices and cultures of domination and resistance. Visit politicaleconomyproject.org for additional media and learning resources.

Explaining state-building failures in Lebanon during the 20th century, this book looks at the relationship between legitimacy and stability in the country since the creation of the state in 1920. The presence of legitimacy is considered necessary to any successful state-building endeavour. This book argues that the Lebanese state failed to achieve any meaningful form of legitimacy from its inception in 1920 to its near-collapse during the civil war. However, by analysing different eras of Lebanese history, throughout the different presidential terms, the author challenges the general understanding of stability and governance to show that the absence of legitimacy and society support actually contributed to the persistence of the Lebanese state. More than this, the evidence shows that Lebanese state was at its most stable when it was regarded as illegitimate. The wider, implicit question thus asked in the book revolves around a case where illegitimacy within the state is what ensures its stability and survival. Based on primary sources including national archives and collections, institutional documents, personal memoirs, newspapers and journals, this book provides a rich survey on the development and functioning of Lebanese political institutions.