The Limits and Possibilities of Democratic Developmentalism: building Developmental Alliances in Brazil and Chile - Submitted for Revision
This paper delves into the complexities of democratic developmentalism in Brazil and Chile, highlighting the formation and influence of developmental alliances on economic diversification strategies in these commodity-dependent democracies. Through a case-study methodology informed by 50 interviews with key stakeholders including policymakers, trade unionists, business owners, and other relevant actors, the paper offers a comparative analysis of how governments navigate the challenges posed by entrenched incumbent sectors. The research finds that Brazil's extensive developmental alliances facilitated some policy achievements, whereas even Chile's modest efforts were hindered by strong resistance from dominant economic sectors and the absence of a robust developmental coalition. These insights underscore the significance of political dynamics and sectoral policies in shaping developmental outcomes. The paper contributes to a growing literature on democratic development practices by demonstrating the importance of developmental alliances in shaping the developmental objectives of governments.
This paper delves into the complexities of democratic developmentalism in Brazil and Chile, highlighting the formation and influence of developmental alliances on economic diversification strategies in these commodity-dependent democracies. Through a case-study methodology informed by 50 interviews with key stakeholders including policymakers, trade unionists, business owners, and other relevant actors, the paper offers a comparative analysis of how governments navigate the challenges posed by entrenched incumbent sectors. The research finds that Brazil's extensive developmental alliances facilitated some policy achievements, whereas even Chile's modest efforts were hindered by strong resistance from dominant economic sectors and the absence of a robust developmental coalition. These insights underscore the significance of political dynamics and sectoral policies in shaping developmental outcomes. The paper contributes to a growing literature on democratic development practices by demonstrating the importance of developmental alliances in shaping the developmental objectives of governments.
The sectoral politics of industrial policymaking in Brazil: a Polanyian interpretation (with Pedro Perfeito da Silva) - Accepted for publication at Development and Change
The article discusses why Brazilian industrial policies have varied across sectors since the mid-1990s. Relying on a Polanyian-inspired framework, we propose that the strength of countermovements against corporate welfare shapes sector-specific capacity of policymakers to exert state discipline over business interests, diverging from neoliberal scripts of industrial policymaking. Prototypical case studies on the automotive, animal protein and pharmaceutical sectors provide support to our argument. In the automotive industry, the continuous pressure from powerful and cohesive labour unions enabled the emergence of a neocorporatist sectoral regime, characterized by a tripartite policy design and encompassing conditionalities. In the case of animal protein, on the other hand, the lack of bottom-up pressure culminated in a disembedded neoliberal sectoral regime, in which business owners got almost unconditional benefits, turning industrial policies into corporate welfare. Finally, in the pharmaceutical industry, the combination of diffuse societal demands and unions with intermediate relevance led to an embedded neoliberal sectoral regime, combining selective conditionalities with some space for non-business participation in the policy design.
The article discusses why Brazilian industrial policies have varied across sectors since the mid-1990s. Relying on a Polanyian-inspired framework, we propose that the strength of countermovements against corporate welfare shapes sector-specific capacity of policymakers to exert state discipline over business interests, diverging from neoliberal scripts of industrial policymaking. Prototypical case studies on the automotive, animal protein and pharmaceutical sectors provide support to our argument. In the automotive industry, the continuous pressure from powerful and cohesive labour unions enabled the emergence of a neocorporatist sectoral regime, characterized by a tripartite policy design and encompassing conditionalities. In the case of animal protein, on the other hand, the lack of bottom-up pressure culminated in a disembedded neoliberal sectoral regime, in which business owners got almost unconditional benefits, turning industrial policies into corporate welfare. Finally, in the pharmaceutical industry, the combination of diffuse societal demands and unions with intermediate relevance led to an embedded neoliberal sectoral regime, combining selective conditionalities with some space for non-business participation in the policy design.
