Transcending the Impasse: Rethinking the ‘State’ and ‘Development’ in Africa

Abstract

This paper contributes to the ongoing debate on alternative development strategies in Africa by considering some of the alternative theories of 'development' that have been advanced in response to the developmental impasse faced by African states. It argues that a serious re-evaluation of what 'development' entails is now required that should involve a clear theoretical break with mainstream development theory. After a brief overview of the main alternative theories of development that have been proposed, the paper argues that the way to transcend the development impasse in Africa is through the concept of the 'developmental state'. It then discusses the major concepts of the developmental state before considering the feasibility of the developmental state in Africa and the key issues of state strength, state autonomy, authoritarianism and the role of the bourgeoisie. The paper argues for the centrality of democratic rural development for the feasibility of developmental states in Africa and concludes with a call to rethink the concept of development and the developmental state from the point of view of democracy and the collective.

Developmental State Model and Democratic Decentralization in Ethiopia: The Compatibility Dilemma

“…A DSM exists where there is a plan rational state, whose orientation is developmental, and which prioritizes industrial policy [43,59]. Gemandze [31] described DS as 'states whose politics have concentrated sufficient power, autonomy, capacity and legitimacy at the center to shape, pursue and encourage the achievement of explicit developmental objectives.' Pointing the difficulty to delineate DSM in one of the conventional ideologies, Woo-Cumings [79].…”

“…He cited the experience of Asian countries like Taiwan and South Korea with the same growth strategy that they implemented [54]. According to the government's Millennium Development Goal has been achieving report, the double digit GDP growth rates which the country achieved since 2003/04 has boosted the confidence of the government in its developmental path [58] Despite the strong faith towards DS as appropriate governance system to developing African states, DS often conceived and explained as inherently propagates a centralized-interventionist 'plan rational state' that tends be authoritarian [25,64,[30][31][32]34]. A number of scholars who have studied the nature of governance in South and East Asian countries' (which are often mentioned as the prototypes of DS) from the1960s up to late 1980s described DS paradigm as antithetical to decentralization particularly to democratic one [1,28].…”