Author: Washaya WASHAYA
Author affiliation(s): Doctoral student at the School of Global Economics and Development, Pôle Universitaire Euclide (Euclid University), Bangui, Central African Republic; Doctoral Fellow at the EUCLID Global Institute, Washington DC (United States)
Email contact: [email protected], [email protected]
Keywords: Africa, sustainable development goals, environmental, social, and economic, policy instability, the rule of law, ideological confusion, post-globalization, developing countries, political economy, Marxism, socialism, nationalism, capitalism, geo-economic vulnerabilities, geopolitical competition, governance, institutions, political will
IGOs: United Nations(UN),
World Bank (WB), International Monetary Fund, African Union(AU), UN Environment(UNEP), United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), African Development Bank (AfDB), World Trade Organization (WTO)
1. Introduction
Policy stability is essential for the achievement of sustainable development goals (SDGs). The rule of law, institutionalism, and democracy are crucial for inclusive economic growth. Political gyrations scare away investors through the creation of hostile investment climates. The effects of government ideologies and short term electoral motives on the achievement of SDGs are a contemporary challenge. Post-globalization wave is also challenging ideological legitimacy and existing power arrangements resulting in the implementation of the sustainable development goals through partnerships evasive. The thrust of this research endeavor is to fathom the practicality of SDGs implementation under ideological disorientation and post-globalization.
The following are the research questions: How practically are SDGs implementable by governments in Zimbabwe, Albania, Venezuela, Greece, Colombia, South Africa, Malawi, CAR, Madagascar, Tanzania, Zambia, Mali, Uganda, Mozambique, Argentina, and Namibia? How do political gyrations affect foreign direct investment in the context of SDGs implementation in selected countries considering that investors need time for confidence? What are the effects of unstable ideologies on SDGs implementation in case countries? How practically are SDGs achievable under the rule of law frameworks in selected countries? Ideological disorientation and post-globalization narrative set the parameters upon which this research revolves spanning from 1995 to 2017.
2. Background
The attempt by various developing states to create viable socialist political settlements produced negative development trajectory. While the majority of genuine socialist qualities remain far from being realized, this contemporary period has not seen necessary changes to the distribution of power and political institutions.[1] These developments had substantial implications for economic transition through liberalization. In many developing countries, for example, Tanzania, the socialist period started with a more limited distribution of power meant to consolidate political power by institutional control of the state and suppressing outside political elements. The effects of socialism on commercial power distribution in Africa were much less successful than its political outcomes.[2]Given the short period of socialist economic policies impact, the achievements in the context of producing an industrial base were initially beautiful.
Furthermore, capitalist differentiation suppressed contextually. Attempts to accelerate agricultural productivity failed. State control of some industries through institutions and strict restrictions on foreign capital meant that the economic power of foreign capitalists reduced. The extension of state companies and market restrictions also reduced the role of role capitalists. Mutually clientelist networks made between those with economic clout and party political power. The Marxist-Leninist variance of socialism policies hinders sustainable growth trajectory.
The failure of socialism to avail a more effective economic transition signified that the surplus produced by the formal economy remained constrained. The problems that became evident in many countries that adopted socialism are well traceable, for example, the demise of Tanzania, Ghana, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The central planning architecture in the four countries suffered from the same pitfalls of other socialist economies. As a result, many African countries were unable to change the underlying distribution of political, economic power adequately. Even under socialism, there was a significant degree of informality that operated through and outside the political institutions in managing critical processes of political redistribution, primitive accumulation, and technology rents. The level of corruption and illegality involved in these crucial transformational agendas became increasingly apparent as liberalization progressed across Africa.[3] The comparative economic transition in the context of SDGs cannot be explained adequately across development contours without attempts to formulate a socialist political settlement necessary institutionalism, and power distribution. Mismatch of perceptions concerning economic reforms and restructuring of the state denotes that neoliberal ideology continues to produce adequate economic policies in developing countries.
While international institutions continue to advocate for neoliberal policies encouraging export-led growth and viable markets for foreign domination, other donor agencies contribute to a similar agenda by supporting decentralization programs. This ideology signifies governments as inefficient, intrusive, and against the tenets of free markets fundamentals. Neoliberalism supports the principles of liberal democracy, in defense of free markets, freedom of individuals, private property protection, and limited government intervention upon a foundation of the rule of law as well as public accountability through responsible government.[4] Liberalism diffuses power and achieves economic and political freedom, which is a prerequisite for the sustainable financial path. In the context of the economic realm, …
