The Political Economy Of The Middle East The Role Of The State

An analysis of the transformation of the political economy of the nations of the Middle East over the past several decades. The authors stress the interrelation of politics and development strategies with regard to class formation and to the definition of powerful new interests.

This is the fifth volume in a series on the Middle East. It focuses on the manner in which the character of the state affects economic policies. It also looks at the relationship between the state and society, and assesses administrative structures for economic policies, and policymaking.

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.

A Political Economy of the Middle East is the most comprehensive analysis of developments in the political economy of the region over the past several decades, examining the interaction of economic development processes, state systems and policies, and social actors in the Middle East. The fourth edition, with new authors Melani Cammett and Ishac Diwan, has been thoroughly revised, with two new introductory chapters that provide an updated framework with which to understand and study the many changes in demography, education, labor markets, urbanization, water and agriculture, and international labor migration in the recent years. The new edition also includes: a new chapter that charts the political economy of the Gulf states and, in particular, the phenomenal growth of oil economies; a new chapter on the rise of "crony capitalism;" and increased coverage of the changes in civil society and social movements in the region, including an exploration of the causes, dynamics, consequences, and aftermath of the Arab uprisings.

Although most Arab countries remain authoritarian, many have undergone a restructuring of state-society relations in which lower- and middle-class interest groups have lost ground while big business has benefited in terms of its integration into policy-making and the opening of economic sectors that used to be state-dominated. Arab businesses have also started taking on aspects of public service provision in health, media and education that used to be the domain of the state; they have also become increasingly active in philanthropy. The ‘Arab Spring,’ which is likely to lead to a more pluralistic political order, makes it all the more important to understand business interests in the Middle East, a segment of society that on the one hand has often been close to the ancien regime, but on the other will play a pivotal role in a future social contract. Among the topics addressed by the authors are the role of business in recent regime change; the political outlook of businessmen; the consequences of economic liberalisation on the composition of business elites in the Middle East; the role of the private sector in orienting government policies; lobbying of government by business interests and the mechanisms by which governments seek to keep businesses dependent on them.

This integrated, analytic text presents a comprehensive analysis of the transformation of the political economy of the entire contemporary Middle East region over the past several decades. As did the first edition, this new edition, extensively rewritten and revised, stresses how different development strategies have contributed to the creation of powerful interests that now often block needed change. The book also retains its focus on the interaction of economic development processes, state systems, and social actors. The revisions not only include much new data and evidence but also take into account emerging issues, such as youth unemployment, impending water shortages, the experience with structural adjustment, pressures for democratization, and the rise of political Islam. The authors also give special attention to the impact of such recent international events as the collapse of the oil boom, the end of the Cold War, and Operation Desert Storm.

Why is it that even though they all call themselves Arab, there are actually twenty disparate Arab states? Why have these states engaged in numerous attempts at political unification, each of which has ended in failure? Although the rhetoric of politics in most countries is based on broad, universalist ideas such as nationalism or socialism, why have actual ruling castes been so narrowly based and non-representative? These are some of the questions that inform this comparative study of politics and the role of the state in Arab world, and make this a key textbook for students of Middle East politics, political theory and political economy.

This book analyzes the political economy of the MENA region with a focus on pre-revolutionary political and economic conditions, the 2011 revolution itself, and post-revolutionary political processes in Tunisia. The author places particular emphasis on the political role of women, Islam, and democracy after the revolution, and argues that post-Revolution Tunisia serves as an ideal model for the MENA region to follow. This volume will interest scholars, students, researchers, and everyone who is interested in the politics of MENA and political economy.