Development Models in Muslim Contexts: Chinese, Islamic and Neo-liberal Alternatives

Recent discussions of the 'Chinese economic development model', the emergence of an alternative 'Muslim model' over the past quarter century and the faltering globalisation of the 'Washington Consensus' all point to the need to investigate more systematically the nature of these models and their competitive attractions. This is especially the case in the Muslim world which both spans different economic and geographic categories and is itself the progenitor of a development model. The 'Chinese model' has attracted the greatest attention in step with that country's phenomenal growth and therefore provides the primary focus for this book. This volume examines the characteristics of this model and its reception in two major regions of the world - Africa and Latin America. It also investigates the current competition over development models across Muslim contexts. The question of which model or models, if any, will guide development in Muslim majority countries is vital not only for them, but for the world as a whole. This is the first political economy study to address this vital question as well as the closely related issue of the centrality of governance to development.

Robert Springborg is a Professor in the Department of National Security Affairs at the Naval Postgraduate School. Previously he held the MBI Al Jaber Chair in Middle East Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, where he was also the Director of the London Middle East Institute. His publications include Mubarak's Egypt: Fragmentation of the Political Order (1989), Family Power and Politics in Egypt (1982), Legislative Politics in the Arab World (co-authored with Abdo I. Baaklini and Guilain P. Deoeux, 1999) and Globalisation and the Politics of Development in the Middle East (co-authored with Clement M. Henry, 2001).