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Global Development Policy in the 21st Century

New Challenges

by Marcin Grabowski (Volume editor) Paweł Laidler (Volume editor)
©2018 Edited Collection 282 Pages

Summary

This book addresses new problems and challenges of development in the 21st century, trying to answer questions, how to turn nations that are underdeveloped and torn apart by conflict into good places to live and how to help them develop. Issues connected with globalization, political challenges, constitutional systems as a condition for development are addressed. Problems of entrepreneurship in developing regions, as well as transnational connections between countries, making them vulnerable to economic crises are also touched upon. Finally, issues connected with institutional design, clean energy, health service challenges, as well as gender issues are analyzed. All those issues refer to developing countries in Asia, Africa, Latin America, as well as Central and Eastern Europe.

Table Of Contents

  • Cover
  • Title Page
  • Copyright Page
  • About the author
  • About the book
  • Citability of the eBook
  • Contents
  • Global Development Policy in the 21st Century: Introduction
  • The Economic and Political Dimensions of Development in the 21st Century
  • PART I: Geography of Development
  • The Impact of the Asian Economic Crises 1997–1998 and 2008–2009 on Regional Security and Development
  • Globalization and Economic Growth: Small States
  • Governing Innovation Ecosystems in Baltics: Unfolding the Case of Lithuania
  • Indigeneity, Autonomy, and Effectiveness of Home-grown Development in Africa: The Case of Rwanda
  • The Peace Corps as a Tool of US Foreign Policy. The Case of a Developing Country: Ukraine
  • PART II: Sectoral Approach to Development
  • The Constitutionalism of Developing Countries: Some Lessons from the U.S. Constitutional Convention
  • Renewable Energy in China, Brazil and India: Fueling Economies, Reducing Risks, and Conserving Resources
  • When Institutions Don’t Work: Institutional Capture and Vested Interests in the Energy Sector
  • Between Policy and Practice: Gender and Sustainable Development in Jordan and Morocco
  • The Globalization Process and its Influence on the Relationship between Man and Man
  • List of Figures and Tables
  • Notes on Contributors
  • Index

Marcin Grabowski and Paweł Laidler

Global Development Policy in the 21st Century: Introduction

Problems of development have been widely discussed for many decades, both in theoretical and practical terms. The current refugee crisis, caused by violent conflicts on the one hand, but also by underdevelopment on the other, as well as the purported ‘end of liberal democracy’ leads us to rethink existing models and patterns of development in order to adjust them to the challenges of the 21st century. Having certain experiences in the development of political systems, legal systems, economies, and governance of given countries at various levels we can contribute to this extremely important discussion: namely, how to turn nations that are underdeveloped and torn apart by conflict into good places to live, how to help them develop, and how to use our Official Development Aid (ODA) tools wisely (learning from the examples of Japan and the Nordic states).

For this reason, we organized a conference Development Policy in the World in the 21st Century with the support of the Sasakawa Young Leaders Leadership Fund and in conjunction with the 25th anniversary of the SYLFF Program at the Jagiellonian University. It was during the conference, when many important issues connected with development were addressed and the idea of preparing a book dealing with those problems was raised. Apart from conference participants, other leading international scholars focusing on current areas of development were invited to contribute to the book.

The main goal of this book is to address these new problems and challenges of development, which appear in development research. It is virtually impossible to cover all aspects of this multidimensional phenomenon, however, authors have tried to address as many as possible in this relatively short study. This book addresses issues connected with globalization and its impact on small states, but also interpersonal relations, political challenges to development, as well as constitutional systems, and the shape of the state as a condition sine qua non for development, in addition to problems of external military engagement, but also problems of entrepreneurship in developing regions, as well as transnational connections between countries, which makes them vulnerable to financial and economic crises, hence hampering development and threatening security. This volume touches upon issues connected with institutional design, clean energy, health service challenges in developing countries, as well as gender issues and ←7 | 8→their impact on development. All those issues refer to a wide variety of developing countries in Asia, Africa, Latin America, as well as Central and Eastern Europe.

The authors of this book have written a set of case studies, touching selected, important areas of development. Generally, this book is divided into two sections: geography of development and sectoral approach to development. They are not mutually exclusive, as the case studies presented and analyzed by the authors combine selected functional issues and geographic areas for analysis.

The second chapter of the book, written by Marcin Grabowski and Sławomir Wyciślak, addresses the issue of external shocks on security and development, with a special focus on contagion mechanisms in a complex system, namely the regional economic system in East Asia. They have prepared an analysis of the role of the Asian Economic Crises of 1997–1998 and 2008–2009 in regional security and development. The study was based on the theory of contagion in a complex system, with an overview of the mechanisms of self-learning in those complex systems. As for the contagion, not only was the economic sphere analyzed, but to a large extent political and security spheres as well, as the economic crises seriously damaged the political structures of the countries affected, like Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand and, to a lesser extent, Malaysia, in many cases causing serious problems in security spheres (such as ethnic tensions in Indonesia). The main argument of the paper is that we may observe an increased vulnerability in more centralized systems. Such systems are also perceived as possessing a lower self-learning capacity, hence being additionally vulnerable in the long term, bringing extra security and development challenges.1

The third chapter of the book, written by João Brito, analyzes the effects of globalization on the growth rates of small countries. In order to conduct this study, a group of 83 small countries were selected (including 38 micro states), defined by various factors, such as small population and market size, vulnerability to climate shocks and lack of natural resources, openness to external trade, but dependence on a limited export market and exported products. Based on the analysis of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and External Trade, the impact of globalization on the GDP per capita growth rate was assessed (with an examination of transmission channels, including human capital, physical capital, and productivity). Based on the analysis of those countries between 1970 and 2014, ←8 | 9→empirical results indicate a positive and significant impact of globalization on the GDP growth of small states.2

More micro-level case studies (single-country studies) were applied by next three articles. The fourth chapter, authored jointly by Ilona Baumane-Vitolina, Annija Apsite and Kristina Grumadaite undertook a definitely post-modern issue of development, namely governance of innovation ecosystems in Baltic states, with a special focus on Lithuania. This case study was selected as, in comparison to Western Europe and the United States (which have long traditions of entrepreneurship and venture capital), the Baltic States have a shortage of private capital for seed investments and even have problems understanding the role of technological start-ups. The analysis was focused on the role of state and non-state actors governing innovation ecosystems in Baltic states in general, and Lithuania in particular.3

The fifth chapter, authored by Jakub Serafin analyzes the role of the Peace Corps as a tool of US foreign policy using Ukraine as a case study. The paper focuses on the educational dimension of development, namely the role of educational programs run with the support of 300 US Peace Corps volunteers there. Those programs aim also at increasing cooperation between the governments of the US and Ukraine, supporting civil society, disseminating ideas of democracy, ←9 | 10→rule of law and civic duties. The paper was driven by the hypothesis that soft power (exemplified by the US Peace Corps) plays a crucial role in building positive relations between states, as well as reinforcing democratic political systems in developing countries.4

The sixth and final chapter of this section, written by Monika Różalska, deals with a small African country heavily affected by civil war in the early 1990s, namely Rwanda. Based on interesting field research in this country, as well as analysis of its national development strategy, the article assesses the effectiveness of incorporating traditional social and cultural practices into the strategy. The novel approach of this text is concerned with incorporation of traditional cultural mechanisms into modern state institutions in order to facilitate both economic development and social unification. In conclusion the author notes the effectiveness of these home-grown solutions towards Rwandan development, including poverty reduction, both in urban and rural areas, empowerment through decentralization, and development of local communities.5

The second part of this book focuses on the sectoral approach to development, and begins with an article by Paweł Laidler. He takes into account the problem of constitutionalism in developing countries, actually a condition sine qua non in the development of political systems. This article refers to the American Constitutional Convention, juxtaposing it with challenges connected with the process of the establishment of constructional frameworks mainly in African and Latin American countries. The US constitution has served several times as a model for other countries in their transformation from non-democratic regimes. ←10 | 11→Paweł Laidler bases his article on an argument that it is not the document itself which is important, but the whole concept of constitutionalism, including the differences effected by the political and social impact of the debates.6

In the next chapter Lada Kochtcheeva presents a broad approach toward renewable energy in crucial developing countries, namely Brazil, China, and India, attempting to address the problem of accessing energy, while securing resources at the same time. This issue is rather multidimensional, as it is important to alleviate poverty, and develop production and transportation, as well as promoting sustainability and environmental standards. The author analyzes the successes and challenges of those three countries in terms of proper policy frameworks, development of technology, and investments in renewables. She argues that renewable policy and technology should suit local conditions, have proper legal and regulatory frameworks, and administrative capacity, as well as concurrent developmental, economic, and societal objectives.7

←11 | 12→

The energy sector was also analyzed by Espen Moe in Chapter 9 in the context of the efficiency of institutions, as they are crucial for economic growth and development. He contrasts good institutions as guarantors of development and their absence, which leads to stagnation, corruption, ill-functioning markets, and a lack of technological progress and human capital. The analysis focused on the Norwegian and Chinese energy sectors, trying to locate institutions within a broader structure. Despite differences between those countries, the outcomes of their policies are similar.8

A growing awareness of gender issues in development studies is not a new phenomenon, but is definitely expanding. This perspective is applied in Chapter 11 by Mary Jane Parmentier, focusing on the role of gender in sustainable development in Jordan and Morocco. In both countries gender issues have been somehow neglected, although Jordan produced a document in 2010 outlining a policy to streamline gender considerations into climate change policy. We do not observe such a mainstreaming in Morocco, but at the same time a greater focus on this issue is visible at the decentralized local level.9

Finally, in Chapter 12 Marcin Rebes analyzes the influence of globalization on broadly understood interpersonal relations. Globalization has brought us increasing individualization and a paradigm of increasing personal wealth, whilst leading to the decay of universal values. Such a depersonalization and the gradual disappearance of interpersonal relations exerts an important influence on the quality of life and challenge development, as they contribute to growing extremism and/or nationalism. The main argument of the chapter states that the process of globalization should be accompanied by a process of personalization of relationships as well as an improvement of the symmetry in relations. This ←12 | 13→task should be implemented by both national governments and international organizations.10

The case studies selected for this book are to a large extent concurrent with the 21st century problems addressed in global development studies; therefore a brief reference to existing literature is provided and we deeply believe this collection of papers will contribute to a broader understanding of the multidimensional phenomenon of development, at the same time contributing to improvement in the quality of life of many people, societies, and countries.

Current research in development studies underlines the necessity to approach the topic from various angles, leading to the conviction that only an interdisciplinary (or broader cross-disciplinary) approach may bring conclusive arguments concerning the future of these studies. Not denying the core meaning of economic studies for research in the field of development, it must be acknowledged that there is a vast array of scholarly fields focusing on different aspects of developing countries and societies. Among many one should definitely mention political science, international relations, security studies, management and communication, sociology, legal studies, history, and even cultural studies and agricultural studies. There is no doubt that focusing on cross-disciplinary approaches in the research of development allows us to achieve not only a broader context, but also to understand the source of development processes, the factors determining their character, and possible directions of their future outcomes.11 An interdisciplinary, or cross-disciplinary approach may only be achieved by collecting research results on the challenges of 21st century development by scholars representing various disciplines, such as economics, political science, sociology, or law. Due to the fact that each article in the present volume was written by a researcher with a different scientific background, one may be ←13 | 14→sure that the final product comprises original findings concerning the status and future character of development studies. And thus is a small addition to one of the most promising but also most challenging contemporary fields of research.

References

Acemoglu, Daron/Robinson, James: Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty. Crown Publishing Group: New York 2012.

Adelman, Carol/Spantchak, Yulya: “Foundations and private actor”. In: Currie, Alder, Bruce/Kanbur, Ravi/Malone, David/Medhora, Reohinton (eds.): International Development: Ides, Experience and Prospects. Oxford University Press: Oxford 2014.

Beaudet, Pierre: “Globalization and Development”. In: Haslam, Paul/Schafer, Jessica/Beaudet, Pierre (eds): Introduction to International Development. Oxford University Press: Oxford 2012.

Berdal, Mats: “Peacebuilding and development”. In: Currie, Alder, Bruce/Kanbur, Ravi/Malone, David/Medhora, Reohinton (eds.): International Development: Ides, Experience and Prospects. Oxford University Press: Oxford 2014.

Brook, David/MacMaster, Caitlyn/Singer, Peter: “Innovation for Development”. In: Currie, Alder, Bruce/Kanbur, Ravi/Malone, David/Medhora, Reohinton (eds.): International Development: Ides, Experience and Prospects. Oxford University Press: Oxford 2014.

Cassiolato, Jose/Pessoa de Matos, Marcelo/Lastres, Helena: “Innovation Systems and Development”. In: Currie, Alder, Bruce/Kanbur, Ravi/Malone, David/Medhora, Reohinton (eds.): International Development: Ides, Experience and Prospects. Oxford University Press: Oxford 2014.

Desai, Vandana: “The role of non-governmental organizations”. In: Desai, Vandana/Potter, Robert (eds.): The Companion to Development Studies. Routledge: London 2014.

Grabowski, Marcin/Wyciślak, Sławomir: “Problem of contagion in complex systems”. Jagiellonian Journal of Management, 1 (2), 2015, pp. 105–118.

Hira, Anil: “State of the State: Does the State Have a Role in Development?” In: Haslam, Paul/Schafer, Jessica/Beaudet, Pierre (eds): Introduction to International Development. Oxford University Press: Oxford 2012.

Hira, Anil: “Environmentally Sustainable Development in Practice”. In: Battersby, Paul/Roy, Ravi: International Development: A Global Perspective on Theory and Practice. Sage: London 2017.

←14 |
 15→

Hsu, Angel/Rosengarten Carlin/Weinfurter, Amy/Xie, Yihao/Musolino, Evan/Murdock, Hannah: Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency in Developing Countries: Contributions to Reducing Global Emissions, retrieved 25.08.2018, from https://wedocs.unep.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.11822/22149/1_Gigaton_Third%20Report_EN.pdf?sequence=1.

Janvry, Alain de/Sadoulet, Elisabeth: Development Economics: Theory and Practice. Routledge: London-New York 2015.

Khadiagala, Gilbert/Motsamai, Dimpho: “The Political Economy of Intrastate Conflict”. In: Currie, Alder, Bruce/Kanbur, Ravi/Malone, David/Medhora, Reohinton (eds.): International Development: Ides, Experience and Prospects. Oxford University Press: Oxford 2014.

Kiely, Ray: “Global shift: Industrialization and development”. In: Desai, Vandana/Potter, Robert (eds.): The Companion to Development Studies. Routledge: London 2014.

Mac Ginty, Roger/Williams, Andrew: Conflict and Development. Routledge: London-New York 2016.

Murray, Warwick/Overton, John: “Globalization/localization and development”. In: Desai, Vandana/Potter, Robert (eds.): The Companion to Development Studies. Routledge: London 2014.

Naidoo, Kumi/Borren, Sylvia: “Civil Society”. In: Currie, Alder, Bruce/Kanbur, Ravi/Malone, David/Medhora, Reohinton (eds.): International Development: Ides, Experience and Prospects. Oxford University Press: Oxford 2014.

Details

Pages
282
Year
2018
ISBN (PDF)
9783631779996
ISBN (ePUB)
9783631780008
ISBN (MOBI)
9783631780015
ISBN (Hardcover)
9783631775417
DOI
10.3726/b15196
Language
English
Publication date
2019 (March)
Keywords
USA Constitutional Systems Economic Growth Institutions Gender Energy Globalization
Published
Berlin, Bern, Bruxelles, New York, Oxford, Warszawa, Wien, 2018. 280 pp., 6 fig. b/w, 16 tables

Biographical notes

Marcin Grabowski (Volume editor) Paweł Laidler (Volume editor)

Marcin Grabowski, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor at the Institute of Political Science and International and the Director of International Security and Development Program at the Jagiellonian University. His research interests focus on the Asia-Pacific Rim, American and Chinese foreign policies, theories of IR and the International Economics. Pawel Laidler is professor of political science, lawyer and a specialist in American studies. He has published several books and articles in Polish and English on the contemporary U.S. political and legal system, with a focus on the role of judiciary, the clash of law and politics in U.S. governmental institutions, as well as U.S. surveillance policies.

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