State-Building
A comparative study of Ukraine, Lithuania, Belarus,
and Russia
Verena Fritz, Overseas Development
Institute, London.
Looks at the process of state-building in Ukraine,
Lithuania, Belarus, and Russia from a political economy
and institutional perspective. Weak and distorted state
capacity has come to be widely recognized as a key obstacle
to successful transformation—including economic
modernization and growth as well as the consolidation
of democracy. However, so far little systematic research
has been carried out on state capacity per se and on
how to explain its development.
The book provides new insights in considering the evolution
of Ukraine since 1992, offering an in-depth view of
institutional development in crucial areas and thus
tracing the process of state-building. It draws comparisons
with developments in Belarus, Lithuania, and Russia
(based on field research). To capture the process of
state-building empirically, focuses on the extraction
and expenditure systems which are a central pillar of
state capacity and also a central link between citizens
and the state. The book also sheds light on how Ukraine’s
potential ‘second transition’ currently
under way will have an impact on its institutional system.
Contents
Introduction; Chapter 1
The state and state-building definitions and debates;
Chapter 2 A framework for assessing
states: size, capacity, and quality; Chapter
3 The dynamic of change: state-building as
institution building; Chapter 4 A model
of post-Soviet state-building trajectories; Chapter
5 State-building in the post-Soviet region;
Chapter 6 From Soviet breakdown to
disordered independence; Chapter 7
A new trajectory taking shape; Chapter 8
The second transition; Chapter 9 Averting
institutional change: the case of Belarus; Chapter
10 Lithuania: Moving towards a Western model;
Chapter 11 The ‘authoritarianizing’
route to recovery: the case of Russian tax reform; Chapter
12 Conclusion; Appendix; Bibliography
"A masterful survey and analysis of a neglected
field of postcommunist studies; namely that of state
and institution building. Well-suited for political
science courses in comparative politics, institutions,
and transitions at the graduate and research levels,
this book will be of considerable interest to policymakers
in international organizations." - Slavic Review
"Verena Fritz offers a spirited examination of
the processes that enhance state capacity and state
quality by assessing the fiscal policies and structures
within four post-Soviet states with variation in state
capacity and state quality outcomes. Combines comprehensive
qualitative case studies of these countries with a quantitative
chapter that examines key variables in all 15 of the
post-Soviet states.
Fritz’s book, which teems with empirical detail
and benefits from comprehensive research for four critical
cases, overcomes problems of conceptual clarity. Her
argument that the timely creation of solid political
institutions without the interference of mafia and oligarchic
groups leads to better and more effective state-building
policies is compelling and persuasive. Moreover, her
finding that such policies may occur in both authoritarian
and democratic contexts defies much conventional wisdom
and provides an interesting challenge for a continued
and vibrant scholarly debate". - Comparative
Political Studies
"An impressive empirical account of the complex
nature of state building in post-Soviet states and convincingly
proposes evaluating the success of this process from
a new fiscal perspective." - Europe-Asia Studies
" The four case studies provide substantial grist
for those interested in generalizations about successful
state building. Furthermore, specialists should find
the cross-country comparisons on the development of
tax regimes interesting. Summing up: recommended."
- Choice
2007
384 pages
ISBN 978-963-7326-90-5 cloth $47.95 / €36.95 /
£24.95
ISBN 978-963-7326-99-8 paperback $24.95 / €18.95
/ £16.99
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