The active underbelly of developmentalism: The power of the state in the twenty-first century

Abstract

Industrial policy has become one of the buzzwords of state interventionism in the political economy of states. Continuity and change in social contracts, the increasing complexity of multi-level governance in the world economy, and the need for greater degrees of co-ordination and greater amounts of capital in key industrial sectors all require a reinvigorated understanding of the state and of state power. This article seeks to develop such an understanding of one state form: the Developmental State. Through an analysis of the Argentine development experience under Nestor Kirchner (2003-07), this article will reveal the need to develop sophisticated understandings of the state and associated concepts of capacity and autonomy to fully grasp its role in the development process, with a particular focus on industrial policy. Such examination will draw attention to the changing nature of industrial policy, and how this is linked to changes in the state as a result of pressures from below (changing constellation of social forces) and from above (changing nature of global forces).