The globalisation debate
MUJIBUR REHMAN
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A CRITICAL NARRATIVE OF THE GLOBALISATION PROCESS
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GLOBALIZATION, POVERTY, AND INEQUALITY: Raphael Kaplinsky, Polity Press, Cambridge. Rawat Publications, Satyam Apartments, Sector 3, Jawahar Nagar, Jaipur-302004. Rs. 895.
The students of history of ideas are certainly going to be troubled by the manner the entire debate on globalisation has unfolded in our time. A majority of advocates perceive that most critics are opposed to the literal meaning of the global movement even though their concerns have been on the exclusionary character of the emerging global market and the conditions on which integration of various domestic markets have occurred.
A majority of critics, on the other hand, view that advocates consider the dehumanising implications of this process desirable. In one of his recent essays on globalisation in his recent book Identity and Violence Amartya Sen argues that the anti-globalisation movement is one of the most globalised movements today.
Such over-generalised perceptions of this contentious debate by both sides have caused more confusion than clarity to the emerging public reason on globalisation. This book renders a sense of deep relief from this point of view because it has the potential to contribute to a meaningful debate. While it would encourage both sides to re-examine their perception of globalisation, its key argument, however, is going to comfort the critics of globalisation than its proponents, because it argues that the process, despite being somewhat beneficial to some sectors, has contributed to the growth of inequality and poverty in most parts of the world.
The author of this `crossover book' makes it obvious in all major chapters that a large bulk of her insights are drawn, not so much from her field research but from her own encounter with development projects. The first chapter begins with an anecdotal account of the day she left South Africa as a political refugee in July 1969.
Critique
The book offers a very critical narrative of the history of the globalisation process, its various stages, its multiple patterns, and identifies the distinctive features of the current era of globalisation.
Additionally, it notes that the current phase of globalisation, beginning after the Second World War and gathering momentum during the 1980s and 1990s, is not distinct. The latter half of the 19th century also witnessed an identical process of global integration, but it was followed by what the author calls "four decades of inward orientation" between 1914 and 1950.
The current phase of globalisation is characterised by a rapid expansion of trade followed by a dramatic reduction of barriers of trade. The chapter on poverty analyses both the absolute and the relative dimensions of standard of living, and argues that the decline of absolute level of poverty still leaves at least 1.2 billion people below the basic poverty line. Furthermore, inequality has risen on a range of dimensions, particularly within countries.
Innovation management
The most intellectually stimulating aspect of this book is its attempt to use the concept of "innovation management" in the analysis of globalisation. The geography of production, it argues, is impacted by the combination of effective use of innovation management and concentrated global purchasing in three specific sectors such as clothing and textiles, automobiles and components, and furniture. While some Asian countries, it argues, have benefited because of globalisation, a large part of Latin American and Carribean countries (specially Sub-Saharan and African countries) have lost.
Is the current form of globalisation sustainable? This analysis shares deep scepticism over its viability. According to the author, the endogenously determined factors arising out of its success would cause setbacks to globalisation. This would happen owing to three factors; first because global value chains are energy intensive and global warming is going to impact the future profitability on this count; second, widespread poverty would cause resentment; and finally, rapid adjustments would induce anxiety and impact distributional patterns triggering further political resistance to globalisation.
All in all, this book is a rich contribution to the growing body of critical literature on globalisation.
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