Blog - Center for International Private Enterprise

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The Lebanese Transformation

The Washington Post has recently added a section to their sidebars on Lebanon and the changes that have occurred within the country since Syria's departure in March 2005. The materials on that page paint a picture of a slow, gradual movement towards Lebanese freedom and economic development. How...

Debt Free?

Argentina repaid its IMF debt today, digging into its Central Bank reserves to come up with the money. A good review of news stories on this is available on the World Bank's website. There are conflicting opinions out there. Some say this move is a signal that things are improving in Latin Amer...

Oil Revenues and Economic Growth

High oil prices (read high oil revenues) do not always mean economic growth. Just look at the oil-rich Azerbaijan. Some 40 percent of the population lives below the poverty line. Teachers in the country earn only about $50 per month. And while the impact of the oil money can be seen in Baku - w...

On Nation-Building

A new book on nation-building edited by Francis Fukuyama is coming out later this month. This volume includes essays by Larry Diamond and Minxin Pei, among others. A lot of work in post-conflict reconstruction concentrates on immediate physical rebuilding of countries (roads, buildings, etc.) ...

Notes from the Field: Uzbekistan (Part 3 of 3)

Part of the reason that small and medium enterprise is suffering so badly is the lack of clear channels of communication between businesspeople and the government. Uzbekistan's treatment of civil society groups makes it nearly impossible for NGOs and business associations to operate without official...

The Effect of Organized Business on Democracy

Ben Ross Schneider's book Business, Politics, and the State in Twentieth-Century Latin America (Cambridge University Press, 2004) explores the linkages between business associations and democracy. Business associations, as an important part of civil society, have the ability to influence "the qualit...

Combating Corruption: China’s Latest Initiative

It seems that executions of public officials for taking bribes in China are doing little to deter corruption there. As corruption remains rampant, the country continues to search for ways to get it under control. The latest initiative - a public website, where citizens can expose corrupt gove...

Notes from the Field: Uzbekistan (Part 2 of 3)

Reforms in Uzbekistan have largely failed to materialize, despite 4-5 presidential decrees on the economy. Part of the reason for this relates to coordination failures within government agencies related to the economy, and because laws seem to be implemented when convenient for the government and ot...

Critical Need for Civil Society-Building in Iraq

Yesterday’s New York Times contained an op-ed by Andrew Erdmann, former National Security Council advisor on Iraq under President George W. Bush and previously a senior advisor to Iraq’s Ministry for Higher Education, on the need for comprehensive institutional engagement with Iraq. Rega...

Economic Solutions to the Mideast Crisis

Today's WSJ features a front page story on the Mideast crisis and its economic underpinnings. The article talks about some of the economic impediments that people in Gaza and the West Bank face - mainly barriers to movement of goods and people - and the implications of these barriers. For example: A...

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