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35101. Pyramid Capitalism: Cronyism, Regulation, and Firm Productivity in Egypt

Author:
Ishac Diwan, Philip Keefer, and Marc Schiffbauer
Publication Date:
03-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
Abstract:
Using an original database of 469 politically connected firms under the Mubarak regime in Egypt, we explore the economic effects of cronyism. Previous research has shown that cronyism is lucrative. We address numerous questions raised by this research. First, do crony firms receive favorable regulatory treatment? We find that they do: connected firms are more likely to benefit from trade protection, energy subsidies, access to land, and regulatory enforcement. Second, does regulatory capture account for the high value of connected firms? In our sample, connected firms exhibit superior corporate performance relative to unconnected firms and this is systematically related to regulatory capture. Energy subsidies and trade protection, for example, account for the higher profits of politically connected firms. Third, do crony firms hurt growth? We exploit a natural experiment setting to show that the entry of politically connected firms into previously unconnected sectors slows employment growth and skews the distribution of employment towards less productive smaller firms.
Topic:
Economics, Economy, Business, Networks, and Cronyism
Political Geography:
Middle East, North Africa, and Egypt

35102. The Power of Transparency: Information, Identification Cards and Food Subsidy Programs in Indonesia

Author:
Abhijit Banerjee, Rema Hanna, Jordan C. Kyle, Benjamin A. Olken, and Sudarno Sumarto
Publication Date:
02-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
Abstract:
Can governments improve aid programs by providing information to beneficiaries? In our model, information can change how much aid citizens receive as they bargain with local officials who implement national programs. In a large-scale field experiment, we test whether mailing cards with program information to beneficiaries increases their subsidy from a subsidized rice program. Beneficiaries received 26 percent more subsidy in card villages. Ineligible households received no less, so this represents lower leakage. The evidence suggests that this effect is driven by citizen bargaining with local officials. Experimentally adding the official price to the cards increased the subsidy by 21 percent compared to cards without price information. Additional public information increased higher-order knowledge about eligibility, leading to a 16 percent increase in subsidy compared to just distributing cards. In short, increased transparency empowered citizens to reduce leakages and improve program functioning.
Topic:
Government, Humanitarian Aid, Food, Political and institutional effectiveness, and Social Policy
Political Geography:
Indonesia and Southeast Asia

35103. Harvard Journal of Middle Eastern Politics and Policy: Spring 2015

Author:
Jennifer Rowland, Nada Zohdy, Brian Katulis, Michael Wahid Hanna, Faysal Itani, Muhammad Y. Idris, Joelle Thomas, Tamirace Fakhoury, Farouk El-Baz, Kheireddine Bekkai, Amira Maaty, and Sarah McKnight
Publication Date:
01-2015
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Harvard Journal of Middle Eastern Politics and Policy
Institution:
The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
Abstract:
Our Spring 2015 volume captures the troubling developments of the past year in the Middle East and North Africa. In 2014, the Syrian conflict that has so beguiled the international community spilled over into Iraq, with the swift and shocking rise of the Islamic State in Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS). ISIS is causing the ever-complex alliances in the region to shift in peculiar ways. In Iraq, US airstrikes provide cover for Iranian-backed militias fighting ISIS; while in Yemen, the United States supports a Saudi intervention against a different Iranianbacked armed group that has taken control of the Yemeni capital. Meanwhile, simmering political disputes in Libya escalated into a full-blown civil war, sparking concern in neighboring Egypt, where the old authoritarian order remains in control despite the country’s popular revolution. The Gulf countries contemplate their responses to record-low oil prices, continuing negotiations between the United States and Iran, and the threat of ISIS. And Tunisia remains one of the region’s only bright spots. In November, Tunisians voted in the country’s first free and fair presidential elections. This year’s Journal brings new analysis to many of these complex events and broader regional trends. We begin with the positive: an exclusive interview with former Tunisian Prime Minister Mehdi Jomaa. In this year’s feature articles: Brian Katulis zooms out to assess the Obama administration’s record in the Middle East over the past six years; Michael Wahid Hanna refutes the notion that the Iraqi and Syrian borders will need to be redrawn as a result of ISIS’ takeover; and Faysal Itani analyzes the US coalition’s strategy to defeat ISIS, arguing that it cannot succeed without empowering Sunni civilians. Muhammed Idris and Joelle Thomas turn to economics in an assessment of the United Arab Emirates’ efforts to go green. Tamirace Fakhoury points out a blind spot in the study of the Middle East and North Africa: how large diaspora communities affect political dynamics in their home countries. Farouk El-Baz takes us to Egypt, where he proposes a grand economic plan to pull the country out of poverty and set it on a path toward longterm growth. From Egypt, we move west to the oft-neglected country of Algeria, where Kheireddine Bekkai argues for more inclusive education policies on national identity. Finally, Amira Maaty comments on the region’s desperate need for robust civil societies, while Sarah McKnight calls for improvements in Jordan’s water policies.
Topic:
Security, Civil Society, Development, Environment, Migration, History, Natural Resources, Social Movement, Islamic State, Economy, Political stability, Arab Spring, Military Intervention, Identities, and Diversification
Political Geography:
Middle East, Algeria, North Africa, Syria, Egypt, Jordan, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, and United States of America

35104. Ballots, Bullets, and Bargains: American Foreign Policy and Presidential Elections

Author:
Michael H. Armacost
Publication Date:
08-2015
Content Type:
Book
Institution:
Columbia University Press
Abstract:
Drawing on twenty-four years of experience in government, Michael H. Armacost explores how the contours of the U.S. presidential election system influence the content and conduct of American foreign policy. He examines how the nomination battle impels candidates to express deference to the foreign policy DNA of their party and may force an incumbent to make wholesale policy adjustments to fend off an intra-party challenge for the nomination. He describes the way reelection campaigns can prod a chief executive to fix long-neglected problems, kick intractable policy dilemmas down the road, settle for modest course corrections, or scapegoat others for policies gone awry. Armacost begins his book with the quest for the presidential nomination and then moves through the general election campaign, the ten-week transition period between Election Day and Inauguration Day, and the early months of a new administration. He notes that campaigns rarely illuminate the tough foreign policy choices that the leader of the nation must make, and he offers rare insight into the challenge of aligning the roles of an outgoing incumbent (who performs official duties despite ebbing power) and the incoming successor (who has no official role but possesses a fresh political mandate). He pays particular attention to the pressure for new presidents to act boldly abroad in the early months of his tenure, even before a national security team is in place, decision-making procedures are set, or policy priorities are firmly established. He concludes with an appraisal of the virtues and liabilities of the system, including suggestions for modestly adjusting some of its features while preserving its distinct character.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Elections, and American Presidency
Political Geography:
United States
Publication Identifier:
9780231539135
Publication Identifier Type:
ISBN

35105. English Identity and Radical Politics

Publication Date:
10-2015
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Mile End Institute, Queen Mary University of London
Abstract:
The question of when a sense of cultural Englishness became salient, and what kind of collective interest the English feel is at stake in the domestic union, has become the focus of considerable academic debate as well as political interest.
Topic:
Nationalism, Politics, Domestic Politics, Identities, and International Community
Political Geography:
Britain and United Kingdom

35106. Migration Management of Syrians in Turkey in the framework of the EU’s Migration Policy

Author:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Publication Date:
11-2015
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation – TESEV and Friedrich Naumann Foundation have organized, in collaboration with the Mersin Chamber of Commerce and Industry a conference titled “Migrant Management of Syrians in Turkey in the Framework of the EU Migration Policy” on October 20th, 2015 in Mersin. The opening remarks were made by Burhanettin Kocamaz, the Mayor of the Mersin Metropolitan Mucipality; Şerafettin Aşut, the Chairman of the Mersin Chamber of Commerce and Industry; and Prof. Dr. Aydın Uğur the Chairman of the Executive Board of TESEV. During three panels entitled as Migrant management in Turkey in the framework of the EU migration policy, Management of Syrian migrants in Turkey, and Being a Syrian migrant in Turkey, public authorities, academics, and Syrians have discussed the challenges and policy recommendations to improve Syrians’ lives and migrant management in Turkey.
Topic:
Migration, Refugee Issues, Refugee Crisis, and Syrian War
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, and Syria

35107. Local Recommendations for Access to Justice in Turkey

Author:
Bürge Elvan Erginli, Gamze Nur Çelik, Koray Özdil, and Seda Akço Bilen
Publication Date:
11-2015
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
The report “Local Recommendations for Access to Justice in Turkey” was developed under the project Enhancing Civic Participation and Confidence Building in the Judicial Reform Process and run in partnership with the Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV) and Turkije Instituut, based in Leiden, Netherlands. The main objectives of the project are to identify, at a local level, the problems that prevent citizens in Turkey from accessing justice in judicial processes, to support local actors serving in the field of justice and law in turning identified problems into significant policy recommendations, and thus, to develop local recommendations for judicial reform.
Topic:
Environment, Law, Courts, and Justice
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, and Netherlands

35108. Promoting Dialogue and Solutions: What European Legislators Think of Turkey

Author:
Aybars Görgülü, Mehmet Ünlü, Samuel Doveri Vesterbye, and Zerrin Cengiz
Publication Date:
11-2015
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
Full membership to the European Union (EU) has been a major foreign policy aspiration for any government leading Turkey in the past three decades. Accordingly, Turkey has been a candidate for EU membership since 1999 and accession negotiations started in 2005. Despite this positive momentum, Turkey is pretty far from full membership perspective as of mid-2015. A decade after the start of the accession negotiations, both sides seem quite busy with their internal problems and the official negotiation process is left into limbo. Although the current political climate does not offer an optimistic look, Turkey’s full membership aspirations are still present. It is clear that Turkey’s membership is different from any previous accession especially due to the size and the demography of the country. However, it should be noted that Turkey deserves a fair treatment and evaluation from the Union if the membership criteria are fully met. Here we face the question of how to tackle socio-cultural prejudice and discrimination with regards to Turkey’s accession process.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, European Union, and Discrimination
Political Geography:
Europe, Turkey, Middle East, and European Union

35109. Penal Policies and Institutions in Turkey: Structural Problems and Potential Solutions

Author:
Berkay Mandıracı
Publication Date:
03-2015
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
Penitentiaries and penal policies have been one of the many areas subjected to changes in the context of the judicial reform taking place in Turkey over the last several years. Officials have been inspired to develop new policies in this field by a number of factors: the rise in the number of inmates and the resulting capacity problem; the inefficacy of outdated municipal prisons; and the need to support the resocialization of inmates through new penal policies. Efforts to increase the resocializing impact of the penal system in Turkey and the mentality transformation aiming at overcoming the historical baggage the penal system carries in Turkey are positive. However, these have not yet produced satisfactory results. This is why human rights violations in penitentiaries in Turkey are still continuing. This report argues that the general aim of the penal regime should be based on ‘resocialization’. Therefore, individuals after going through all stages of the penal process and after facing their crime, should be given the opportunity to fully participate in society again. With this perspective the report assesses the current penal reform process in Turkey and puts emphasis on the need for a holistic penal regime that focuses on resocialization of offenders in all penal stages and applies international human rights standards.
Topic:
Human Rights, Prisons/Penal Systems, Reform, Criminal Justice, and Justice
Political Geography:
Turkey and Middle East

35110. Corruption Assessment Report for Turkey

Author:
Zerrin Cengiz, Pelin Yenigün Dilek, Ezgican Özdemir, Hande Özhabeş, R. Bülent Tarhan, Ayşe Üstünel Yırcalı, and H. Ceren Zeytinoğlu
Publication Date:
02-2015
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
he Corruption Assessment Report for Turkey is the product of the research conducted by TESEV’s Good Governance program under the Southeast European Leadership for Development and Integrity (SELDI) initiative. This report documents the agenda of the first phase of the SELDI partnership that spans 2012 through 2014. Along with presenting evidence on the degree of corruption in Turkey, the report analyzes the current legal setting and the effects of corruption on the economy. It emphasizes the importance of a free judicial system, the role of civil society, and the benefits of international collaboration in fighting corruption. The report also offers possible solutions to fighting corruption, focusing on the elements that make corruption commonplace.
Topic:
Civil Society, Corruption, Accountability, and Transparency
Political Geography:
Turkey and Middle East