The new contributions in this book, by acknowledged leaders in the field, examine the delivery of effective aid under fire, and securing the peace in environments where governance is fragile. They bridge the cultural divide between the security and development professions at a time of unprecedented global economic integration, geopolitical turbulence, and novel threats to international peace and security. More than a billion people live in countries where governance is weak, poverty is rampant, and economies are depressed. Failed and frail states provide ideal breeding grounds for civil strife, criminality, and "new wars" that target civilians, use children as combatants, and commit massive human rights violations. The new security risks loom within national borders, while the capacity of the international community to intervene 'behind borders' remains inadequate. Policy making for security still relies heavily on military responses. Yet military responses cannot address, and may even worsen, the social and cultural antecedents of civil strife and social resentment. Similarly, development aid policy and practice are poorly adapted to the new realities of frail governance and insecure operating environments in aid recipient countries. This book was previously published as a special issue of the leading journal Conflict, Security and Development.

Since its launch in 2006, the Hamilton Project at Brookings has produced extensive research on how to create a growing economy that benefits all Americans. Its pragmatic work aims to increase opportunities for broad-based wealth, economic security, and enduring growth. Path to Prosperity, the first book to emerge from the Hamilton Project, presents important and original work to that end. P ath to Prosperity focuses on three key criteria for fostering broadly shared economic growth: enhancing economic security, building a highly skilled work force, and reforming the tax system. Income security proposals offer methods for reforming unemployment insurance, protecting against the risk of reemployment at a lower wage after job loss, and improving incentives for retirement saving. Education proposals build human capital by improving each level of education, from preschool programs for poor children to graduate fellowships in math and science. The tax proposals seek to make taxation simpler, more progressive, and better suited to a global economy. Contributors include Roger C.Altman, Reuven S.Avi-Yonah, Jason E. Bordoff, Kimberly A. Clausing, Susan M. Dynarski, Molly E. Fifer, Richard B. Freeman, Jason Furman,William G. Gale,Austan Goolsbee, Robert Gordon, Jonathan Gruber,Thomas J. Kane, Lori Kletzer, Jeffrey R. Kling, Alan B. Krueger, Jens Ludwig, Peter R. Orszag, Howard F. Rosen, Robert Rubin, Isabel Sawhill, Judith E. Scott-Clayton, and Douglas O. Staiger.

Introduction -- The fundamental tension -- Taming the hierarchy -- Forging the political terrain -- The developing world: two examples -- The use of power -- Conclusion

Reassessing the developing world through the lens of Europe's past Today’s developing nations emerged from the rubble of the Second World War. Only a handful of these countries have subsequently attained a level of prosperity and security comparable to that of the advanced industrial world. The implication is clear: those who study the developing world in order to learn how development can be achieved lack the data to do so. In The Development Dilemma, Robert Bates responds to this challenge by turning to history, focusing on England and France. By the end of the eighteenth century, England stood poised to enter “the great transformation.” France by contrast verged on state failure, and life and property were insecure. Probing the histories of these countries, Bates uncovers a powerful tension between prosperity and security: both may be necessary for development, he argues, but efforts to achieve the one threaten the achievement of the other. A fundamental tension pervades the political economy of development. Bates also argues that while the creation of a central hierarchy—a state—may be necessary to the achievement of development, it is not sufficient. What matters is how the power of the state is used. France and England teach us that in some settings the seizure and redistribution of wealth—not its safeguarding and fostering—is a winning political strategy. These countries also suggest the features that mark those settings—features that appear in nations throughout the developing world. Returning to the present, Bates applies these insights to the world today. Drawing on fieldwork in Zambia and Kenya, and data from around the globe, he demonstrates how the past can help us to understand the performance of nations in today’s developing world.

On August 24-25, 2010, the National Defense University held a conference titled “Economic Security: Neglected Dimension of National Security?” to explore the economic element of national power. This special collection of selected papers from the conference represents the view of several keynote speakers and participants in six panel discussions. It explores the complexity surrounding this subject and examines the major elements that, interacting as a system, define the economic component of national security.

The new contributions in this book, by acknowledged leaders in the field, examine the delivery of effective aid under fire, and securing the peace in environments where governance is fragile. They bridge the cultural divide between the security and development professions at a time of unprecedented global economic integration, geopolitical turbulence, and novel threats to international peace and security. More than a billion people live in countries where governance is weak, poverty is rampant, and economies are depressed. Failed and frail states provide ideal breeding grounds for civil strife, criminality, and "new wars" that target civilians, use children as combatants, and commit massive human rights violations. The new security risks loom within national borders, while the capacity of the international community to intervene 'behind borders' remains inadequate. Policy making for security still relies heavily on military responses. Yet military responses cannot address, and may even worsen, the social and cultural antecedents of civil strife and social resentment. Similarly, development aid policy and practice are poorly adapted to the new realities of frail governance and insecure operating environments in aid recipient countries. This book was previously published as a special issue of the leading journal Conflict, Security and Development.