Rentier States & Economies -
Deontological, Teleological & Ideological Clangs
Public Lecture – RL Vol XI No XVIII, CXXIV, MMXVII
Costantinos Berhutesfa Costantinos, PhD
Professor
of Public Policy, School of Graduate Studies,
College of Business and Economics, AAU
Abstract
In political science and international
relations theory, a rentier government is a state, which derives all, or a
substantial portion of its national revenues from the rent of indigenous
resources to external clients, where only few are engaged in the generation of
rent, while the majority is involved in its distribution and consumption.
Rentier theory makes a distinction between ‘earned’ and ‘unearned’ income and
assumes that a rentier economy creates a specific mentality. The economic
behaviour embodies a break in the work-reward causation - a complacent attitude
among the rentier states, which contrasted vividly with the sense of alarm and
urgency prevalent in most other underdeveloped countries with massive
impoverishment of the general populace. Consistent
with the political strategy, rentier regimes undertake major restructuring of
the polity, setting the foundation for and cutting it up into a score of
regional governments based on linguistic, ethnic and cultural identity. In
engaging in uncertainty reducing activities which short cut the full emergence
of open and transparent states, rentier regimes often enlist the support of
outside participants. Ideological constructs tend to be unsettled and, at
times, unsettling.
Although states have the central responsibility
for safeguarding the security of their citizens and providing public services,
they can also be a source of domestic and international insecurity. Such states
are fragile or collapse, manifested by violent disorder, conflict, lawlessness,
and collapse of basic services. There is growing concern among politicians,
development agencies and academicians about weak, fragile, or failing states.
This concern is that fragile states serve as a base for terrorist groups,
organized crime and other international security threats. In
state building, it is possible to draw a conceptual distinction between two
levels of articulation of ideology and to note the implications of their
relations for process openness. These are representations of specific
interests, identities, needs, wishes, goals, claims, demands and so on,
different in different individuals, groups and communities on the one hand and production
and circulation of ideology where broad-based concepts, principles and rules
take shape and come into play, on the other. Peace, stability and development
require effective and legitimate states able to fulfil their responsibilities
of providing basic social services and security to citizens. State building will contribute to human security and international stability.
State building also assumes that the only way a state can function peacefully
is if it has gained acceptance and support being accountable and responsive to
citizens.
Key words: rentier state, rent seeking, rent,
deontology, teleology, ideology
See lecture here or https://www.academia.edu/33922155/Rentier_States_and_Economies_-_Deontological_Teleological_and_Ideological_Clangs_Vol_XI_No_XVIII_CXXIV_MMXVII.pdf
No comments:
Post a Comment