It's the Economy Stupid: How Libya's Civil War Is Rooted in Its Economic Structures

Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI) releases Jason Pack's overarching meta-analysis of the uniqueness (and unique dysfunctionality) of the Libyan economy:  It's the Economy Stupid: How Libya's Civil War Is Rooted in Its Economic Structures.

The first half of the paper Pack engages in a philosophical and historical exploration of the Libyan economy and its institutions -- seeking to explain how and why it is so radically different from any other economy on earth. At the end of this quest, I postulate that the Libyan economy is dominated by Semi-Sovereign Economic Institutions, which are more powerful than the rival Libyan governments and constitute the very crux of Libya's Qadhafian inheritance and current brokenness.

In the second half of the paper, he puts forth an economy-driven approach to mediating the Libyan conflict, arguing that although full scale reform is not yet possible, a bold push for financial transparency on behalf of international actors, the leaders of Libya's semi-sovereign economic institutions and Libyan civil society could tip the balances away from conflict and towards a new social contract.

Read the whole paper here.