State Building and Democratization in Africa and the Middle East

Aim

After completing the course, the student should be able to:

• describe the meaning and driving forces behind state-building processes as well as democratization movements.
• Describe how political, economic, cultural and religious circumstances impact state formation and democratization in Africa and the Middle East.
• Analyze the political consequences state-building processes and democratization movements have on international politics.

Content

The course explores, based on comparative politics and through a number of specific empirical cases and theoretical perspectives, the understanding of state-building, institutionalization processes, and democratization movements in the Middle East and Africa. Consequently, several political phenomena that have emerged in relation to state-building processes are addressed. These include identity politics, policy processes, new administrative models, clan politics, migration, and notably, nationalism and Islamism. The course also delves into significant ideologies that have shaped historical developments in these political/geographical regions.