An Approach to the Regional Neoliberal Governance in...

An approach to the regional neoliberal governance in Southern Africa from a critical perspective. In order to examine the possible implications of neoliberalism in contemporary Africa, an analysis based on a regional dimension is important. The multiplicity of strategies and methods of governance in a specific regional context can appear merging, mingling or even clashing, since regions can be understood as political and social projects, where different actors act in favour of the maintenance, protection or transformation of prevalent structures. In that way, according to Sà ¶derbaum, regions can be disrupted from within and from without by the same forces that build them up. (Sà ¶derbaum 2004a, p. 421). The process of economic†¦show more content†¦(Ibid: p. 433) The problems that arise from the expansion of the neoliberal policies, as a core element of the attempted regional governance and regional integration, become more obvious if we focus on concrete cases from the region. Taking in consideration the limited scope of the essay, I will refer to problems that have arosen in the case of South Africa and its foreign and domestic policies in connection to economic development and integartion of the southern african region. Domestically, South Africa was aiming at reducing state expenditure, at privitizations and the liberalization of trade and capital. Under the GEAR, since 1996, neoliberalism became the leading force in its economy, while the country appeared willingfull to dominate in the regions economic and political spheres, by establishing a market for its expanding economy, rather than being involved at the assistance of other continental countries. Contradicting the main assumption of neoliberal regional governance, South Africaâ⠂¬â„¢s economic interests are served by a political strategy that is engineered to pry open markets, and to pave the way for establishing footholds in different economic sectors, especially if this will result in muscular corporate penetration. (Alden Le Pere, p. 159). The country managed to rapidly expand its economy through exports of products and capital, to the rest of the continent. This resulted at ‘South Africa Inc.’ asShow MoreRelatedOne Significant Change That Has Occurred in the World Between 1900 and 2005. Explain the Impact This Change Has Made on Our Lives and Why It Is an Important Change.163893 Words   |  656 PagesE SSAYS ON TWENTIETH-C ENTURY H ISTORY In the series Critical Perspectives on the Past, edited by Susan Porter Benson, Stephen Brier, and Roy Rosenzweig Also in this series: Paula Hamilton and Linda Shopes, eds., Oral History and Public Memories Tiffany Ruby Patterson, Zora Neale Hurston and a History of Southern Life Lisa M. Fine, The Story of Reo Joe: Work, Kin, and Community in Autotown, U.S.A. Van Gosse and Richard Moser, eds., The World the Sixties Made: Politics and Culture