The State and the Advocate: Case studies on development policy in Asia - Softcover

Rosario, Teresita

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1138055492 ISBN 13: 9781138055490

Publisher: Routledge, 2017

Synopsis

This book seeks to demonstrate the role of public policy in support of equitable and inclusive development. The achievement of this overarching goal rests on an assumption that development does not happen by chance or by accident, but, rather, through the deliberate application of analytical tools which public policy is able to provide. Set within an Asian context, the book emphasizes the role of public policy in reducing poverty, eliminating deprivation, promoting equity, and ensuring social justice.

The book likewise aims to provide an argument for the developmental role of the state – one which has been the subject of a long-standing debate among development scholars. In addition, the book accounts for the role of civil society organizations, particularly their involvement in multi-stakeholder participation. Through different case studies, this book explains the outcome of public policy decisions as combinations of efforts among government and civil society actors, to ensure the creation of the most optimal public good. Finally, the book takes a comparative perspective, i.e., there are cases that directly or indirectly implicate the regional character of public policies that result in the creation and distribution of regional public goods.

About this title

About the Author

Teresita Cruz-del Rosario has a background in Sociology, Social Anthropology, and Public Policy from Boston College, Harvard University, and New York University. Her research interests are on comparative social movements in Southeast Asia, migration, sustainable development, and land grabs.

Review

‘This book provides a wealth of information and insights about planning and development projects in Southeast Asia. It carefully documents how South Eastern governments seek to align with international development guidelines as well as with local contingencies. Such efforts are always institutionally intricate and politically laden. The chapter on the Nam Theun hydroproject in Laos analyzes in detail the foreseen negative impacts and the mitigation measures, including the fate of numerous consultation processes. Another chapter traces the agrarian reform actions in The Philippines and focuses on the intriguing coalition of the Congress for a People’s Agrarian Reform. While it failed in the short term due to internal and external impediments, its legacy provides indicators for the long term.’ ―Harro van Lente, Socrates Professor Philosophy of Sustainable Development, ICIS, Faculty of Humanities & Sciences of Maastricht University

About this edition

• Publisher: Routledge
• Publication date: 2017
• ISBN 10: 1138055492
• ISBN 13: 9781138055490
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 294