The Economics of the Middle East: A Comparative Approach - Softcover

Rauch, James E.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 019087919X ISBN 13: 9780190879198

Publisher: OUP USA, 2019

Synopsis

Countries in the Middle East have very different economies, even if they are often grouped together. In The Economics of the Middle East, James Rauch focuses on the drivers of their distinctiveness, including the effects of their natural endowments, geographic locations, and interactions with the global economy.

This book evaluates the socioeconomic trajectories of three groups of Middle Eastern States: Sub-Saharan African, fuel-endowed, and "Mediterranean." It compares these groups both to each other and to developing countries in other regions with similar characteristics. Rauch draws on basic approaches to economic development to enhance understanding of important issues, such how policies on gender, education, health, and the environment affect development. His comparative perspective sheds light on how and why the Arab countries, Iran, and Turkey have done better or worse than similar countries in other regions. His analysis throughout is supported by data that are well organized and clearly presented.

Rauch develops new insights on topics as diverse as unemployment, urbanization, corruption, and the importance of intraregional flows of investment and migrants. The result is a fascinating and balanced overview of the socioeconomic performance of the Arab countries, Iran, and Turkey that presents a new lens on the economics of the Middle East.

About this title

Review

James Rauch's The Economics of the Middle East examines important issues facing the region from the perspective of fundamental economic principles and, in doing so, fills an important gap in the literature. It provides scholars a clear, empirically rich discussion of international trade and industrialization, human development and inequalities, environmental challenges, and other critical issues facing the Arab world, Iran, and Turkey. (Ellen Lust, Professor of Political Science; Founder and Director, Program on Governance and Local Development, University of Gothenburg)

The book provides students from economics, political science, and public policy with an accessible overview of economic theory, allowing them to better understand the subsequent chapters which explain why the Arab region lags behind other middle income countries in economic and human development. I highly recommend this volume for graduate survey courses on Middle East Politics and political economy of development (Lindsay J. Benstead, Associate Professor of Political Science, Portland State University)

About the Author

James Rauch is Professor of Economics at the University of California, San Diego. He is a Guggenheim Fellow and a Research Associate with the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER). He has done extensive research in the Middle East and was a Visiting Scholar at the Institute of Financial Economics in the American University of Beirut.

About this edition

• Publisher: OUP USA
• Publication date: 2019
• ISBN 10: 019087919X
• ISBN 13: 9780190879198
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 328