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Fixing Failed States: A Framework for Rebuilding a Fractured World 1st Edition

by Ashraf Ghani (Author), Clare Lockhart (Author)
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 93 ratings
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Today between forty and sixty nations, home to more than one billion people, have either collapsed or are teetering on the brink of failure. The world's worst problems--terrorism, drugs and human trafficking, absolute poverty, ethnic conflict, disease, genocide--originate in such states, and the international community has devoted billions of dollars to solving the problem. Yet by and large the effort has not succeeded.

Ashraf Ghani and Clare Lockhart have taken an active part in the effort to save failed states for many years, serving as World Bank officials, as advisers to the UN, and as high-level participants in the new government of Afghanistan. In Fixing Failed States, they describe the issue--vividly and convincingly--offering an on-the-ground picture of why past efforts have not worked and advancing a groundbreaking new solution to this most pressing of global crises. For the paperback edition, they have added a new preface that addresses the continuing crisis in light of ongoing governance problems in weak states like Afghanistan and the global financial recession. As they explain, many of these countries already have the resources they need, if only we knew how to connect them to global knowledge and put them to work in the right way. Their state-building strategy, which assigns responsibility equally among the international community, national leaders, and citizens, maps out a clear path to political and economic stability. The authors provide a practical framework for achieving these ends, supporting their case with first-hand examples of struggling territories such as Afghanistan, Sudan, Kosovo and Nepal as well as the world's success stories--Singapore, Ireland, and even the American South.
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  1. ISBN-10
    0195342690
  2. ISBN-13
    978-0195342697
  3. Edition
    1st
  4. Publisher
    Oxford University Press
  5. Publication date
    May 2, 2008
  6. Language
    English
  7. Dimensions
    9.3 x 1.1 x 6.1 inches
  8. Print length
    272 pages
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Ghani and Lockhart, both former U.N. advisers to Afghanistan, spotlight the critical problem of failed states: countries where governments have all but collapsed, basic services go unprovided and terrorism and criminality reign unchecked—or even abetted—by a corrupt and predatory state. The authors do a fine job in emphasizing the centrality of a strong, accountable state in addressing poverty and underdevelopment. Unfortunately, their analysis suffers from its heavy reliance on management theory. Abstractions (such as the power of networks, flows of information and capital, webs of value creation) and business-school truisms (underlying a sound management system is an effective supply-chain management) litter their turgid discussion. Fixated on New Economy conceits, they say little about the crucial task of quelling violence and lawlessness; instead they dwell on globalization-oriented development strategies drawn from Ireland, Singapore, Oregon and other regions that are not failed states. (Fatuously, they even liken Sudan's travails to those of troubled conglomerate Tyco International.) The authors do offer a persuasive critique of the ill-conceived, incoherent aid complex run by the U.N. and other agencies, which, they argue, undermines and supersedes weak states instead of stabilizing them. Aid officials could learn from these insights, but they don't amount to a comprehensive fix-it. (May)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

"Clear, taut language makes it accessible at almost any level of education...a roadmap to a groundbreaking new solution to this most pressing of global crises."--United Press International

"Ashraf Ghani is a practitioner turned theoretician. Drawing on his background at the World Bank and as the first post-Taliban finance minister of Afghanistan, he together with Clare Lockhart develops a comprehensive framework for understanding the problem of state-building. He argues persuasively that this will be the central challenge underpinning world order in our globalized age, and offers practical solutions for meeting it."--Francis Fukuyama, author of State-Building: Governance and World Order in the 21st Century

"This book is an important and timely alarm bell for the world's next crisis-and proves that no one knows more about how states function (and don't) than Ghani and Lockhart. We ignore their remedies at our peril."--Hernando de Soto, author of The Mystery of Capital: Why Capitalism Triumphs in the West and Fails Everywhere Else

"Fixing Failed States provides a brilliantly crafted and extraordinarily valuable analysis of what makes states fail and what makes them succeed. Everyone concerned about improved governance-and particularly public officials at all levels in industrialized, emerging and developing nations alike-will benefit enormously from reading this and studying the great insights it provides."--Robert Hormats, Vice Chairman of Goldman Sachs (International)

"Ashraf Ghani and Clare Lockhart have filled a critical gap in our understanding of development, security and state-building. By combining an insightful analysis of weak and failed states with a clear-eyed proposal rooted in practical experience, the authors provide the international community with both a better understanding of the challenges we face and a solution."--Gayle Smith, Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress and former Senior Director for African Affairs at the National Security Council

"Ashraf Ghani has held one of the toughest jobs on earth: the Finance Minister responsible for the reconstruction of Afghanistan. This experience grounds the analysis of failed states in a rare sense of realism. Here, he and Clare Lockhart cover the full array of problems that beset failed states, which range far beyond the conventional remit of development agencies."--Paul Collier, author of The Bottom Billion

"The authors...offer a persuasive critique of the ill-conceived, incoherent 'aid complex' run by the U.N. and other agencies, which, they argue, undermines and supersedes weak states instead of stabilizing them."--Publishers Weekly

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Oxford University Press; 1st edition (May 2, 2008)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 272 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0195342690
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0195342697
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.15 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 9.3 x 1.1 x 6.1 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 93 ratings

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Ashraf Ghani

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Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
93 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Bill H.
5.0 out of 5 stars Solid Prescription
Reviewed in the United States on October 5, 2011
Verified Purchase
Ashraf Ghani and Clare Lockhart are intrepid state entrepreneurs. Their thoughtful analysis of roles that states must play in building societies is characterized by their list of ten essential state functions. Moreover, they have reinforced the framework of markets, citizens, and state by capping with a fourth institutional tier- that of the international community through the idea of a `double compact'. But their focus is squarely on state-building that achieves a high `sovereignty index' which means that the government effectively produces meaningful public value for its citizens. If you are looking to engage the latest and most relevant nation-building strategy, this book provides an invaluable service.
4 people found this helpful
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SG
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Insight!
Reviewed in the United States on September 4, 2018
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Very good information and one of few books, that actually gives you good insight. As an Afghan who spent a lot of time in Afghanistan, I can confirm this.
4 people found this helpful
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Gerard S. Rao
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing and Well Researched and Insightful book
Reviewed in the United States on February 28, 2015
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Amazing book. Well written and founded on some truths that some of us may have knon about yet failed to acknowledge. Governance is all about knowing what is wrong and then trying multiple tactics with a visionary strategy that is adjusted continuously.
4 people found this helpful
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DRS
1.0 out of 5 stars Failed Book
Reviewed in the United States on March 17, 2018
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If this is the best book and thinking on fixing failed states, it's no wonder we have so many failed states. I love the general topic and am a forgiving reader but this is the most painful book I've read in years. It is absolutely overloaded with sentence after sentence of glittering generality such as, "These men made use of an “open moment”—a rare period in which the status quo can be ruptured and possible futures imagined, based on constructive, citizen-centered politics." Absolute drivel repeated over and over and over. In all seriousness, it's no wonder we have so many failed states, including Afghanistan, which the authors prematurely describe as their success but we clearly know now is not the case, if this is the best thinking on the topic.
69 people found this helpful
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amyh90
3.0 out of 5 stars Only worth reading if you're working on Afghanistan issues
Reviewed in the United States on February 28, 2015
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This book is interesting (especially if you have anything to do with Afghanistan these days) since the author is trying to put his ideas into practice. The examples are flawed and dated and I'm not convinced by the policy prescriptions. If I wasn't working on Afghanistan, I would haven't read this book.
7 people found this helpful
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Najibullah Yamin
5.0 out of 5 stars Fixing Failed States: A Framework for Rebuilding a Fractured World
Reviewed in the United States on January 9, 2014
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I bought and paid for the used one, but it was like a new and in good shape. It arrived before promised time.
2 people found this helpful
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David Munyua
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on April 23, 2015
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Very outstanding book
2 people found this helpful
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Harry S.
1.0 out of 5 stars Not as described
Reviewed in the United States on January 18, 2022
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Book contained underlining
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Top reviews from other countries

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Mustafa
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 12, 2023
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People underestimate Ashraf Ghani’s works because he ‘failed’ in Afghanistan, while not actually knowing anything about the Politics in Afghanistan.
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Austrian Romeo
5.0 out of 5 stars Das beste Buch für jede/ jeden
Reviewed in Germany on October 4, 2017
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Das beste Buch für die Studenten/ Absolventen der Studienrichtungen Politikwissenschaft , Internationale Enrwicklung, Mitarbiter der internationalen Hilfsorganisationen ( UNO etc) und vieles mehr
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Aziz Rahman
5.0 out of 5 stars first experience, the best experience
Reviewed in Canada on November 30, 2014
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Got it on time, the book is 10/10
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Docteur Chapireau
5.0 out of 5 stars A most useful book
Reviewed in France on November 3, 2014
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Excellent book, both academic and easy to understand for non specialists. Quite a feat.Theory and Practice both carefully explained and convincing.
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Andy
4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent overview of challenges and strategies in nation building in fragile/failed states
Reviewed in Canada on May 1, 2014
Verified Purchase
A comprehensive overview of issues in domestic and international efforts to strengthen governance and the economy in fragile/failed states, drawing from first-had experience and extensive research in a variety of countries -- Afghanistan, Nepal, and others.

The authors pull few punches in describing problems linked to UN, World Bank, and bilateral donors' strategies, as well as domestic challenges. The solutions they offer can take decades to implement, and call for technical expertise, political will and institutional capacity that are often in short supply, especially in the early stages of a nation building exercise where predatory elites can play a major disruptive role. At times I felt as if I was reading a graduate level public administration text with a focus on fragile/failed states, which called for merging international and endogenous approaches in contextually-appropriate institutional development.

This extensive experience-based treatment of the subject is rare, and worth reading by anyone interested in better understanding and addressing many of the factors at play in the approximately 50 fragile/failed states that are home to about one billion of our fellow human beings. It is a good complement to works by Paul Collier, Matt Andrews and others addressing similar issues from other vantage points.
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