Political Economy in the Middle East

• Credit value: 15 credits at Level 6
• Convenor and tutor: Barry Maydom
• Prerequisite: Politics in the Middle East or Introduction to International Political Economy
• Assessment: a take-home test (90%) and 500-600-word seminar log (10%)

This module introduces you to the academic study of contemporary political economy in the Middle East. It examines a variety of political economies in the region, from the petro-states of the Gulf to crony capitalism in North Africa. It analyses the modern history of political economy in the region, from the rise and fall of state-led development, through IFI-promoted structural adjustment to the creation of new social contracts in the wake the Arab Uprisings. Specific topics studied include the political economy of labour, migration and gender, along with case studies of Egypt, Jordan, Tunisia, Algeria, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Indicative module syllabus

• Varieties of Political Economy in the Middle East
• The Rise and Fall of State-Led Development
• Structural Adjustment and the Rise of Crony Capitalism
• Oil and Rentier States
• Trade Unions and Workers’ Movements
• Migration
• Gender
• Egypt and Jordan: the Political Economy of Authoritarian Regimes
• Algeria and Tunisia: Difficulties in Political and Economic Transitions
• Saudi Arabia and Qatar: the Future of Oil States

By the end of this module, you will:

• be familiar with the development of, and contemporary issues in, Middle Eastern political economies
• have developed a a critical approach to key concepts and texts used in the analysis of political economy in the region.