Liberal market or state run you

[Thierry.]

Economists and Comparative management students and professionals Inshallah in the coming years these are the issues we shall be dealing with. Read the following topic and Answer the following question.

 

Q1) When a viable state arises in Somalia should we privatise most sectors and let market efficiency take control or the State have a stronger influence?

 

 

Somali Success Story

Does anarchy mean chaos?

The East African country of Somalia has lacked a nationally recognized central government since Siad Barre's dictatorship collapsed in 1991, and it has been without large-scale American intervention since 1994. A supposed national government run by former warlord Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed operates out of Nairobi, Kenya, not in Somalia itself. The country is notorious as an anarchic zone where ruthless warlords push around pitiful peasants and government is completely absent.

That chaotic picture has elements of truth; a recent BBC report on urban Somalia found no shortage of people lamenting the lack of free passage down roads and the amount of their income paid as kickbacks to armed gangs. But in a recent study two World Bank economists found a surprising side to Somali statelessness. Its "private sector experience," Tatiana Nenova and Tim Harford write, "suggests that it may be easier than is commonly thought for basic systems of finance and some infrastructure services to function where government is extremely weak or absent." They report that "Somalia boasts lower rates of extreme poverty and, in some cases, better infrastructure than richer countries in Africa."

Areas where Somalia is doing as well as or better than neighboring countries include the percentage of population living on less than $1 a day, roads per capita, and telephones per thousand people. (Somalia's highly competitive, cheap, and thorough telecommunications industry includes many functioning Internet caf鳠in the capital city of Mogadishu.) Areas where Somalia lags behind--sometimes far behind--include literacy and access to safe water.

The study (available at rru.worldbank.org/Documents/ 280-nenova-harford.pdf) doesn't advocate statelessness as a positive solution. But it does note that people have a tenacious ability to figure out ways for life to go on, no matter what the governmental circumstances. It outlines three chief methods by which Somalis have addressed their large-scale social and economic needs without government: traditional clan systems (which provide services such as savings, insurance, and legal dispute resolution); simple market transactions (for small-generator electricity, among other things); and foreign sources (for example, airplane crews are leased from international suppliers, and the U.S. dollar provides monetary stability).?

[Abu-Salman]

Privatizing infrastructures is highly recommended for chronically corrupt countries; else, there is little point in talking about "developpment" as epitomized in our region.

 

For instance, Djibouti port and airport have been privatized and are now much more competitive, not least through staff discipline and motivation (khat ban in the port premises, dismissals uncompromized by "special interventions" ect).

 

Likewise, Kenya scandalous economic underachievement, despite its varied opportunities and constant flow of aid or foreign direct investment, could largely be explained by World leading corruption standards.

 

But shouldn't such countries privatize their duties & tax collection prerogatives as well?

 

However, the context is diametrically different in a Shariah compliant State where corruption is fought against severely as a priority and only deserving managers are nominated to sensible posts...

[gavin]

Originally posted by Thierry.:

Q1) When a viable state arises in Somalia should we privatise most sectors and let market efficiency take control or the State have a stronger influence?

I am an anarcho-capitalist living in California. From what I have read, Somalians seem most likely to embrace a "no-government" nation. There seems to be a tremendous amount of unrest lately as groups try to erect a governmental structure over the Somalis, who in turn seem to (possibly) instinctively reject the new government. Very libertarian.

 

I am extremely interested in the AnCap movement in Somalia. I wonder if there is anything I can do to help.

[Naden]

Originally posted by gavin:

There seems to be a tremendous amount of unrest lately as groups try to erect a governmental structure over the Somalis, who in turn seem to (possibly) instinctively reject the new government. Very libertarian.

Not really. Somalis are rejecting a tribal and genocidal rule propped by outside interest and decidedly American support and approval. No one instinctively rejects peace, prosperity and effective administration. That would be the prime responsibility of an effective government and Somalis, like all the people of the world, would welcome it. That is not the hope on the ground and hasn't been in more than 40 years.