MESA Banner
Bottom-Up Elements in an Inclusive Program for Sustainable Development in Egypt
Abstract
As of mid-2014, three and one-half years after the uprising, a spectrum of possible approaches for economic transformation had emerged in Egypt. These approaches included (1) a revamped neoliberalism under the auspices of the IFIs and Deauville Partnership, (2) a developmental state and industrial policy in the East Asian mode, (3) a more egalitarian developmental state as proposed by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and International Labor Organization (ILO), and (4) a citizen-led developmental state as encoded in the work of NGOs and the independent trade union movement. This paper explains how these four approaches were manifest in Egypt during the period from 2011 to 2014, evaluates how they addressed the critical questions raised by economists and activists before, during and after the uprisings, and then compares Egypt with Tunisia as of December 2014. The first-hand research consists of interviews and consultations conducted over three years (2012, 2013 and 2014) in Egypt with economists, business owners, economic journalists, ILO representatives, NGO activists and trade-union leaders. This will be complemented by interviews planned for Tunisia in March 2015. Questions addressing external dimensions of economic structure and function include regional integration and the relationship between Egypt and its Gulf partners in particular, the issue of “odious debt,” debt forgiveness and the conversion of debt to development aid, the role of foreign direct investment in meeting the development needs of the host country, and the role of the IFIs in influencing public policy and supervising programs. Questions addressing internal dimensions include, first, transparency and accountability, taxation, and the role of domestic capital in influencing public policy. Second, what elements does the national program include of indicative planning, industrial policy and balancing public and private investment, the meeting of human needs, e.g., for employment, healthcare and housing, and incorporation of the informal sector into the larger economy? Third, does the national economic program meet the demands of workers to freely organize, choose their own leaders, bargain collectively, and participate in the design and implementation of industrial policy to modernize production and raise productivity? The paper concludes with a proposal for Egypt to move toward a truly inclusive and coherent development program that systematizes the rich contributions of the fourth alternative, while also incorporating compatible elements from the Deauville partners, state-led development model, and the programs proposed by the UNDP and ILO.
Discipline
Economics
Geographic Area
Egypt
Tunisia
Sub Area
19th-21st Centuries