International Capitalist System Research Articles

The Historical Projections of Poverty Trapped in the Hegemony of the Capitalist Ideology within the Frame of the World Bank's Quasi-War on Poverty

The World Bank is an important international institution that plays a role in forming the perception of global poverty and the fight against poverty. Since its foundation, the Bank's approach to the concept of poverty and the policies it proposes to eliminate poverty have undergone radical changes. The study aims to reveal the theoretical and practical dimensions of the Bank's approach to poverty with their evolutionary reflections. In the study, different definitions of the World Bank regarding the concept of poverty will be included in the axis of poverty concept and different depictions of the transformation of poverty-related policies over the years. The development approach the Bank has developed for the last 40 years is likely connected to the neoliberal policies loyal to mainstream (neoclassical) economics principles. Therefore, the emphasis on the problem of poverty put by the Bank for the last few decades consists of representing the same political prescriptions to the world economies to solve the problem. In this context, it can be argued that the policies created by the Bank regarding poverty rely on ideological concerns rather than reality since it is clear that the development discourses effectuated by the Bank over the years and the policies for the elimination of poverty generated accordingly cannot be evaluated independently of the dynamics arising from the efforts of the US to perpetuate its hegemony over the international capitalist system.

EBIRA MIGRANTS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN EKITI, NIGERIA IN THE COLONIAL ERA

This paper explores the migration and spread of the Ebira migrants into Ekiti of southwest Nigeria in the colonial era The impact of colonial rule on Nigeria is still a subject of debate This paper indicates that Ebira migrants are a major factor in the effectiveness of the colonial economy in Ekiti land. In order words, Ebira migrants are a factor in the integration of Ekiti society into the international capitalist system through “cheap workers” in the Ekiti. This article uses a methodology that uses oral sources as well as historical materials in this paper. This paper demonstrates that migration is crucial for the survival of economic development in all societies by solving important problems. This paper follows the same approach, considering the situation in Ekiti land in the colonial period in Nigeria.<p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/edu_01/0557/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>

An Evaluation of Mono-product Economies & examining the sine qua non for diversification - In West Asian Region

The discovery of oil in West Asia has contributed to its integration into the international capitalist system. The mono-commodity, oil, has brought tremendous wealth to West Asia. But a rising population and an ever growing demonstration effect, has caused imports to grow exorbitantly, with oil prices expected to fall, depicted explicitly by recent oil price drop, also over time as interest in climate change increases after RIO-20, and more options of renewable energy sources coming on line like Gas, Solar Energy, wind power and nuclear energy etc. the rentier mode of development followed by west Asian economies is clearly unsustainable. Further the oil producing nations are so over-specialized that they do not possess the necessary flexibility to shift their resources from one sector to another, or to develop substitution if and when the need arises. Moreover, the ability of oil producing countries to respond to deliberate or accidental economic measures taken abroad is limited. This paper theoretically analyses the standing of the West Asian mono product economies, their specific traits, benefits and disbenefit of current condition and looks into the case for diversification of West Asian Region. As diversification is a sine qua non in long Run for the sustainability of the West Asian economies.

Historic Global Commodity Networks: the Research Potential of Rubbish Dumps for the Study of Rural Household Market Access during the late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries

AbstractThis article discusses the research potential of rubbish dumps for the study of rural household market access during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. By investigating the global commodity networks associated with four rubbish dumps excavated by the authors in the East Anglian region, at Hempstead (Norfolk), Kirton and Falkenham (Suffolk) and Holme Hale (Norfolk), the article will show how these archives can be used to locate individual rural households within the international capitalist system. This article also discusses the potential challenges faced when analysing the historic rubbish dump archives.

Underdevelopment theory: a conceptual clarification

This paper examines the theoretical exposition of underdevelopment based on content analysis and qualitative techniques. The paper argues that underdevelopment in the third world nations resulted from the negative effects of colonialism and neocolonialism i.e., exploitation of mineral resources of colonies, unequal terms of trade, imposition of foreign rule and dubious activities of multinational corporations. The adoption of adjustment programmes by the third world nations has contributed immensely to their underdevelopment. However, there are internal dimensions to development of underdevelopment in the third world nations such as widespread corruption, prebendalism, personalization of power, poor leadership and lack of good institutions to discharge social responsibilities efficiently and effectively. Thus, unless corruption is controlled to the barest minimum, good leadership installed and exploitative tendencies of international capitalist system controlled through a regulated capitalism, the third world nations would continue to be underdeveloped.Keywords: Underdevelopment, development, third world nations, dependency

Embodying the Modern: Neoliberalism, NGOs, and the Culture of Human Rights Practices in Nigeria

IntroductionThis article is my attempt to unravel the growing influence of NGOs (nongovernmental organizations) in Nigeria. There are two important elements in mapping NGOs in Nigeria today. First, the culture of NGO is emblematic of the ways in which neoliberal economic and political reforms in Africa, and particularly in Nigeria, change the face of the state, thereby creating a new space that prioritizes NGOs as a better alternative to the state. Second, by creating new spaces for NGOs to thrive, neoliberalism incorporates NGO leaders into the class of elitism. Politics is and continues to be considered the domain of elite politicians who have been in control of the political process in postcolonial Africa. NGO leaders have historically seen these politicians as standing in the way of economic and political development of Africa and Nigeria. Unfortunately, this disdain for political leaders has led NGO practitioners, who are now a part of the new elite class, to present themselves as non-political and non-partisan. This decision leaves political participation and contests for elections in the hands of the elite politicians NGO leaders oppose. Such decisions by NGO leaders ignore the possibility of using their new elite status as a mechanism for real change.The combination of these two elements has continually produced outcomes such as economic and political deprivation for many citizens in ways that have promoted NGOs and CSOs (civil society organizations) to the status of rescue organizations. One such outcome is that NGOs have become one of the fastest growing industries in Nigeria. They cater to the needs of thousands of unemployed youths by employing them in such as periodic election monitoring or regular reporting of human rights violations to the transnational networks of human rights organizations in the global north.Illustrative of these are the activities of CLEEN Foundation (formerly known as Center for Law Enforcement Education in Nigeria), and CISLAC (Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Center). Both CLEEN and CISLAC emerged in Nigeria as a result of promotion of neoliberal economic and political in the post-Cold War era by international financial institutions (e.g., the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the Paris and London Clubs). While these two organizations are not alone in promoting this particular set of practices, mapping the political trajectory of its leaders provides a clear understanding of how neoliberalism promotes apolitical CSOs in ways that create new sites of power.This article also examines the emergence of NGOs in Nigeria through the location of their proliferation within a transnational economy shaped by the dominant international capitalist system. This system privileges the idea that a free market economy is deductively inscribed in the freedom of citizens, but the citizens' ability to actively participate in the affairs of the nation-state is inhibited by state (such as the violation of human rights, illegal detention, and the denial of access to land, livelihood, and resources) that negate neoliberal practices. This idea further suggests that private ownership of capital should trump the public good. Central to this idea is the notion that the state-already seen as oppressive and a locus of rights violations-does not have the capacity to mold citizens. In contrast, CSOs and NGOs are considered to be important in the construction of a new society that embodies modern ideas about participation, respect for human rights, and the molding of good citizenship. I examine what I call the rearticulation of praxis and reordering of practices by looking at the changing meaning of CSOs and NGOs in most academic literature, and suggest that there is a need to focus on how the particularities of Nigeria dictate how CSOs and NGOs shape practices.Finally, I look at the work of CLEEN and CISLAC to show how they have reshaped national discourses about power and social inequalities in ways that feed into neoliberal discourses of power and social structures. …

The Place of Africa in Global Economy: Nigeria in Perspective

The dominant feature of global economic trends in contemporary world system is globalization, which is being driven particularly by a new wave of information technology that is unparalleled in the history of human kind. Nation-State has consistently intensified efforts towards engaging in business across national borders and constructing production and distribution networks on a global scale. Global economy may be judged by many criteria, but the most important one is undoubtedly development in all its forms. Literature reviews indicate that many developing countries, Nigeria included are ‘weeping baby’ of globalization because they are at the receiving end. Nigeria is a cripple giant in the globalization wave because the economy in order to situate her more appropriately in the global trend and to understand the dynamic consequences of the process of global economy in Nigeria, the position of Nigeria and the role it plays in the international capitalist system. In order to illuminate the factors accountable for the skeweness towards the countries of the north, the paper adopts both descriptive and analytical methods. It also makes use of scientific analysis by employing dependency theory to explain the dynamics of the existing relationship between the Advanced Economies and the Third World Economies, the impact of such relationship skewed. The paper concludes and puts forth necessary recommendations to correct the global economic imbalance that will make Africa, and in particular to take her rightful place in the global economic system. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n2s1p213

Deregulation of the Nigerian economy: The theoretical milieu

The deregulation of Nigerian economy was the main thrust of the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) introduced in the country in 1986 under the leadership of General Ibrahim Babandiga (1958-1993). Prior to that period the Nigerian economy was almost a command one with wide range of government control. Indeed, the introduction of SAP was said to be a final solution to the economic crisis faced by the Country. Unfortunately, SAP was introduced yet, the economy became more crunched. During the General Abach's regime (1993­1998), SAP was suspended out rightly. When General Abdulsalami Abubakar (1998-1999) took over, he continued pursuing the privatization programme which is a synonym of deregulation of the economy with the promulgation of another privatization decree. The civilian government led by President Obasanjo which took over from 1999 made deregulation the core with vigour. It is basked on this development that this paper intends to unravel the theoretical paradigm under which the deregulation of Nigerian economy could be explained. This includes capitalism, imperialism, colonialism particularly the incorporation of Nigerian into international capitalist system.

Contesting Unfair International Capitalism: Assessment of the Effectiveness and Impact of Campaigning and Advocacy from the NGO Sector

Campaigning and advocacy are fundamental strategies that the NGO sector now employ to tackle the adverse effects of the international capitalist system, which has affected impoverished groups of people and countries in the last 30 years, imposing unfair rules and practices. The strategies of campaigning and advocacy (in principle based on the strong links between the North and the South, and between NGOs and community organisations) have been backed by some governments, the media and many other actors from the civil society, both at local and global level. However, these strategies have also been criticized and it has been argued that campaigns and advocacy work are more directed to NGOs own objectives. Issues regarding legitimacy, representation, autonomy, motivation and impact are at the core of that debate. This paper presents an assessment of all these issues from the point of view of the local activists themselves. Two main campaigns are used for the discussion, the Trade Justice and the Jubilee Debt campaigns. The evidence presented in this paper relies on the authors’ reflections, interviews with campaigners and the Campaigns teams’ documentation. We conclude that campaigning is effective for combating dominant international capitalism and increasing the accountability towards the poor.

Indigenous Communists and Urban Intellectuals in Cayambe, Ecuador (1926–1944)

This case study provides an example of how people from two fundamentally different cultures (one rural, indigenous, Kichua-speaking and peasant, and the other urban, white, Spanish-speaking and professional) overcame their differences to struggle together to fight social injustices. Rather than relating to each other on a seemingly unequal basis, the activists recognized their common interests in fighting against the imposition of an international capitalist system on Ecuador's agrarian economy. Emerging out of that context, activists framed collective interests, identities, ideas, and demands as they worked together to realize common goals. Their actions challenge commonly held assumptions that leftist activists did not understand indigenous struggles, or that indigenous peoples remained distant from the goals of leftist political parties. Rather, it points to how the two struggles became intimately intertwined. In the process, it complicates traditional understandings of the role of “popular intellectuals”, and how they interact with other activists, the dominant culture, and the state.

The Process of Globalisation and Class Transformation in the West

In this article the contemporary international capitalist system is examined and a rising New International Division of Labour is defined. It is argued that while in previous epochs an international market of commodities existed, during the post-war period a global network of closely interconnected production units and financial institutions has been created as well. But while production, finance and commerce are decentralised worldwide, their management and control is centralised in a few headquarters in the advanced capitalist countries. A colossal concentration of economic power and control over the world means of production, resources and labour force, unprecedented in the history of capitalism, is taking place. Information Technology is shown to be the current day means of centralisation of organisation and control of both material and service production by capital. It, at the same time, allocates work and degrades its knowledge content. Coupled with the prevalence of services in western society, it ...

What kind of state is the Russian state if there is one?

The stalling of Russia's transition to capitalism and the apparent ineffectiveness of its presidential regime raises important questions about the nature of the Russian state and its apparatus. Paradoxically, it seems to have connived in the demise of Russia as a nation and world power and even in its own instruments of governance. To understand this self‐destructive process it is necessary to look beyond the trappings of Russian democracy and focus on the apparatuses of political power. Several typologies of the Russian state have been advanced. To analyse it, however, requires not only looking at the internal dynamics of the Yeltsin regime but also locating it in the larger correlation of domestic social forces and Russia's place in the international capitalist system.

Culture Across Borders: Mexican Immigration and Popular Culture (review)

Arizona Journal of Hispanic Cultural Studies 305 Culture Across Borders: Mexican Immigration andPopufar Culture University of Arizona Press, 1998 Edited by David R. Maciel and Maria Herrera-Sobek The 1995 Immigration Enforcement Act, the recent doubling of the Border Patrol force, numerous English-Only initiatives, and California's Proposition 187 all clearly attest that immigration—particularly immigration from Mexico—is once again a politically expedient issue in the United States. But as David R. Maciel and Maria HerreraSobek note in their introductory review of the growing field of immigration studies, despite the continued impôt tance of Mexican immigration to both nations, surprisingly little has been written about the cultural or artistic representations that these immigration processes have inspired. This volume brings together scholars from the fields of art history and criticism, cultural studies, film analysis, folklore, cultural history, literary criticism, and political science for an interdisciplinary exploration of the cultural aspects of Mexican immigration on both sides of the border. In the first article in the collection, '"What Goes Around Comes Around': Political Practice and Cultural Response in the Internationalization of Mexican Labor, 1890-1997," Juan Gómez-Quiñones and David R. Maciel provide an excellent historical framework through which both the migratory movements of Mexican immigrants and related political and cultural practices can be better understood. Gómez-Quiñones and Maciel assert that the developing international capitalist system is the propelling force that drives immigration, and that it is necessary to understand the connections between changing economic forces and the cultutal and political ideologies that arise in response to Mexican immigration . The authors summarize the historical development of these economic transformations and the resulting waves of Mexican immigration and then connect these changes to particular political, legal, and cultural responses such as the perennial scapegoating of Mexican immigrants for U.S. economic decline despite hard empirical data to the contrary. GómezQui ñones and Maciel's article provides a critical historical context for the other articles in the collection. Although the subject matter investigated in the articles that follow includes a diverse range of popular cultural productions, the authors share a general conceptual approach to the study of culture. Drawing on elements from the writings of Herbett Marcuse, Zygnunt Bauman and Clifford Geertz, Maciel and Herrera-Sobek explain that any genuine culture arises from the marginal or ascending classes and consists of a set of 306 Arizona Journal of Hispanic Cultural Studies ideals that guides and actualizes behavior towards a liberating transformation of society. In the essays, the various cultural texts and genres studied tend to be assigned to one of three cultural groups: North American (Anglo), Mexican, or Chicano. The patterns in the forms, functions, or meanings of the texts are then interpreted and compared within their historical and cultural contexts using a variety of methodological and theoretical approaches. Alberto Ledesma's article compares Mexican and Chicano literary narratives involving immigration and explores the problematic relationship between Chicano literature and its representations of undocumented immigration. Next, Victor Sorrell employs the concept of cultural mestizaje in a semiotic reading of more than eighty Chicana/o and Latina/o popular artists stressing the myriad ways in which the experience of immigration shapes these artists' work and in which this art works to reshape the meanings of immigration. David R. Macial and Maria Rosa GarciaAcevedo discuss the treatment of Mexican immigration in film and describe the distinct ideological representations of Mexican immigration in Mexican cinema, the Hollywood style, and Chicano cinema. Maria Herrera-Sobek then examines the important aesthetic, emotional, and ideological functions of corridosand canciones'in Mexican immigrant films. Finally, José Reyna and Maria Herrera-Sobek analyze the thematic, ideological and linguistic patterns in jokes and jests about immigration collected from Chicana/os. Well-written, insightful and engaging, these investigations of the cultural representations of the Mexican immigrant experience will prove both useful and enjoyable reading for all students of "border" culture. But unfortunately, much of the textual analysis fails to fully articulate the connections between the cultural representations and their specific socioeconomic and historical-political contexts. For example, a collection of essays exploring popular cultural productions seems incomplete without critical attention to the differing economic constraints...

Beyond Inevitability: The Opening of Philippine Provincial Ports in 1855

The opening of Philippine provincial ports to the world market in 1855 served to solidify the direct incorporation of regions outside Manila into the international capitalist system. This article reconstructs the events surrounding this important episode by situating it in the context of global capitalist dynamics and Spanish imperial decay, and the conjuncture in which local interest groups manoeuvred to intervene in the colonial state processes of the Spanish Philippines. In line with Philip Abrams' vision of history as the nexus of structure and action, the 1855 ports policy is reinterpreted as issuing from the articulation of macro and micro spheres, a perspective which allows for contingency in so far as the possibilities of human actors confronting structured totalities are multiple yet theoretically bounded. By eschewing the overdetermined view of socioeconomic change and by accounting for human agency in history, this article serves as a case study to overcome the notion of inexorability that, as David Booth rightly points out, has been frequently imputed to the epoch of global capitalist change.

Nigeria as Africa's Great Power: Constraints and Prospects for the 1990s

Associate Professor of African Politics, University of Texas, Austin; Visiting Professor of Political Science, University of Toronto, 1990-1; formerly chair of the Department of Political and Administrative Studies, University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria; recent publications include Nigeria and the International Capitalist System (co-editor with Toyin Falola, 1988) and co-author (with Timothy Shaw) of Towards a Political Economy of Nigeria: Petroleum and Politics at the Semi-Periphery (1986).

Nigeria and the International Capitalist System

Nigeria and the International Capitalist System

The Socialist Experience in Greece

The Greek experience under the government of the party of the Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) is so complex, and its ramifications so varied, that an exhaustive discussion cannot be undertaken within the limits of an essay: it would require a book. Furthermore, at the time of writing, the experience is not yet over. In what follows, I attempt to give only an overview of the implications of, and responses to, some of the inherited social and economic conditions and other constraints that I believe to be basic for understanding the dynamics of the successes and failures of the PASOK government.1 Even though questions have been raised about PASOK's concept of socialism, or the commitment of its leadership to it, Greek social and political conditions have changed for the better during the tenure of the PASOK government. But because most of these changes have been limited in scope, it is important to ask whether it would have been possible to do better than what the record indicates. Ultimately, one would like to know whether it is possible to transform progressively, or socialize, a society in a semi-industrialized country, such as Greece, that is incorporated into and depends on the mechanics of the international capitalist system. This question goes beyond the Greek experience itself. But if on whatever basis the answer is affirmative, then one must ask whether the transformation to democratic socialism is feasible by democratic means. Given the recent experience not only in Greece, but also in some Latin American and Asian countries, I believe that positive answers to both these questions require an element of faith.2

Nigeria and the International Capitalist System

Nigeria and the International Capitalist System

Nigeria and the International Capitalist System

Nigeria and the International Capitalist System

Nigeria and the International Capitalist System

Nigeria and the International Capitalist System