Business Politics in the Middle East

Business Politics in the Middle East PDF Author: Steffen Hertog
Publisher: Hurst Publishers
ISBN: 1849042357
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 386

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Book Description
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.

Business Politics in the Middle East

Business Politics in the Middle East PDF Author: Steffen Hertog
Publisher: Hurst Publishers
ISBN: 1849042357
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 386

Get Book Here

Book Description
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.

Doing Business in the Middle East

Doing Business in the Middle East PDF Author: Pete W. Moore
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1139456350
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 230

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Book Description
Is business the solution to the problems of the Middle East? Some economists and policymakers argue that unleashing the Arab private sector is the key to sustainable growth and more liberal politics. Pete Moore's book is the first to examine relations between state authority and elite business representation in the region. By analysing the Kuwait and Jordan cases, he considers why organised business in Kuwait has been able to coordinate policy reform with state officials, while their Jordanian counterparts have generally failed. The author concludes that unleashing the private sector alone is insufficient to change current political and economic arrangements, and that successful economic adjustment requires successful political adjustment.

Crony Capitalism in the Middle East

Crony Capitalism in the Middle East PDF Author: Ishac Diwan
Publisher:
ISBN: 019879987X
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 463

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Book Description
This volume provides new perspectives on crony capitalism in the Middle East. It draws on rich empirical information on the activities of political connected firms in the economy and their impact on private sector development in the region.

Networks of Privilege in the Middle East: The Politics of Economic Reform Revisited

Networks of Privilege in the Middle East: The Politics of Economic Reform Revisited PDF Author: S. Heydemann
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 1403982147
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 335

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Book Description
This volume explores the role of informal networks in the politics of Middle Eastern economic reform. The editor's introduction demonstrates how network-based models overcome limitations in existing approaches to the politics of economic reform. The following chapters show how business-state networks in Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan have affected privatization programs and the reform of fiscal policies. They help us understand patterns and variation in the organization and outcome of economic reform programs, including the opportunities that economic reforms offered for reorganizing networks of economic privilege across the Middle East.

The Political Economy of Regional Cooperation in the Middle East

The Political Economy of Regional Cooperation in the Middle East PDF Author: Ali Carkoglu
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1134648863
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 369

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Book Description
This book explores the current anatomy of regional cooperation and why it has often failed to take hold. It offers an alternative view of politics and international relations in the Middle East. The findings show that co-operation between many of the more open regimes, such as Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Palestine and Turkey can pave the way to increased stability in the region. The authors argue that focusing on international and regional factors alone is insufficient in explaining the prevailing instability in the region. Instead they highlight domestic factors as crucial to understanding conflict and co-operation in the Middle East. Using many examples and looking particularly at Turkey's experiences, this study shows why it is essential to mobilize domestic support for co-operation amongst countries and regions of the Middle East. Without such support from economic and social groups, inter-governmental co-operation is less likely to last.

Doing Business in the Middle East

Doing Business in the Middle East PDF Author: Donna Marsh
Publisher: Robinson
ISBN: 1472135679
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 303

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Book Description
This new and updated book is necessary reading for all professionals working in the Middle East and North Africa, it includes: - The practical impact of Islam on business - Safety and security in the region - Business etiquette - Political and social do's and don'ts The practicalities of doing business in the MEA region are covered in detail, from the initial visit to establishing productive working relationships, including opening an office in the region. It also focuses on issues of particular importance to all businesswomen, and for men who might be working with Arab and Muslim women.

From Resilience to Revolution

From Resilience to Revolution PDF Author: Sean L. Yom
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 0231540272
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 311

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Book Description
Based on comparative historical analyses of Iran, Jordan, and Kuwait, Sean L. Yom examines the foreign interventions, coalitional choices, and state outcomes that made the political regimes of the modern Middle East. A key text for foreign policy scholars, From Resilience to Revolution shows how outside interference can corrupt the most basic choices of governance: who to reward, who to punish, who to compensate, and who to manipulate. As colonial rule dissolved in the 1930s and 1950s, Middle Eastern autocrats constructed new political states to solidify their reigns, with varying results. Why did equally ambitious authoritarians meet such unequal fates? Yom ties the durability of Middle Eastern regimes to their geopolitical origins. At the dawn of the postcolonial era, many autocratic states had little support from their people and struggled to overcome widespread opposition. When foreign powers intervened to bolster these regimes, they unwittingly sabotaged the prospects for long-term stability by discouraging leaders from reaching out to their people and bargaining for mass support—early coalitional decisions that created repressive institutions and planted the seeds for future unrest. Only when they were secluded from larger geopolitical machinations did Middle Eastern regimes come to grips with their weaknesses and build broader coalitions.

Politics in the Middle East

Politics in the Middle East PDF Author: Elie Kedourie
Publisher: Oxford [England] ; New York : Oxford University Press
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 456

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Book Description
Events in the Middle East have prompted many questions concerning the conflict between Islam and the European states which have, historically, been seen as a military and political challenge. Why has ideological politics triumphed in the Middle East? Why have attempts to form constitutional governments repeatedly failed in Islamic states? This new and authoritative account provides the historical analysis necessary for a clearer understanding of these questions.

Sport, Politics and Society in the Middle East

Sport, Politics and Society in the Middle East PDF Author: Danyel Reiche
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0197507158
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 300

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Book Description
Sport in the Middle East has become a major issue in global affairs. The contributors to this timely volume discuss the intersection of political and cultural processes related to sport in the region. Eleven chapters trace the historical institutionalization of sport and the role it has played in negotiating "Western" culture. Sport is found to be a contested terrain where struggles are being fought over the inclusion of women, over competing definitions of national identity, over preserving social memory, and over press freedom. Also discussed are the implications of mega-sporting events for host countries, and how both elite sport policies and sports industries in the region are being shaped. Sport, Politics and Society in the Middle East draws on academic disciplines from the humanities and social sciences to offer in-depth, theoretically grounded, and richly empirical case studies. It employs diverse research methodologies, from ethnography and in-depth interviews to archival research, to make a lasting contribution to this critical subject.

Political Narratives in the Middle East and North Africa

Political Narratives in the Middle East and North Africa PDF Author: Wolfgang Mühlberger
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 303035217X
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 190

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Book Description
This book discusses the role of political narratives in shaping perceptions of instability and conceptions of order in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). The authors illustrate how, in times of socio-political turmoil and outbursts of discontent such as the Arab Spring, political entrepreneurs explain and justify their political agendas by complementing hard power solutions with attractive ideas and discursive constructions that appeal to domestic constituencies and geopolitical allies. The book is divided into two parts. The first focuses on non-state actors, such as confessional communities and ideological movements, who aim to develop narratives that are convincing to their respective polities. It also studies regional powers that seek to determine their positions in a competitive environment via distinctive narrations of order. In part two, the authors investigate the narratives of global players that aim to explain and justify their role in an evolving international order.