Somaliland's Private Sector at a Crossroads is the World Bank Group's first effort to undertake a consultative in-depth analysis of the private and financial sector in Somaliland in at least a generation. The objective of the report is to take stock of what has been achieved since the 1999 constitution was approved, provide an assessment of the current evolution of the private sector, and identify some priority policy options and related actions that would best enable the private sector to generate the growth and jobs sought under the Somaliland National Development Plan. The report is structured around the three key sector 'actors' of the economy: enterprises, financial institutions, and the government. This approach has been taken to facilitate a 'political economy' lens into the analysis. The report explores trends in, opportunities for, and impediments to effective government regulation of the private and financial sector and private sector-led economic growth in Somaliland, a relatively new democracy with limited institutional capacities. Drawing heavily on feedback received through an extensive consultative process that was undertaken in tandem with the analysis, the study concludes with recommendations for policy choices for the continued robust growth of the private sector and the evolution of a sounder financial sector.

The Success of Small States in International Relations highlights the normality and power of small states in international relations. This book overturns the stereotype that small states, however defined, are weak and are, or ought to be, consigned to the margins of international relations. It argues that small states are not ‘punching above their weight’, or even anomalies – since it is large states which are the anomaly in the global system. The text unpacks the nature and character of small state success, while also looking critically at thirteen episodes in modern history where small states, singly or collectively, emerged victorious in confrontations with larger states. The case studies, globally sourced, are bookended by conceptual and analytic reviews of what these events mean for diplomacy, international relations and small states more generally. This book will appeal to scholars and students of comparative political science and international relations, particularly from small states, as well as policy makers and senior small state government officers.

This book analyzes how de facto states—including Nagorno Karabakh, Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Transnistria, Kosovo, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, Somaliland, and Taiwan—have developed without recognition of sovereignty from the international community.

Return migration has received growing levels of attention in both academic and policy circles in recent years, as the African diaspora's role in contributing to the development of their country of origin has become apparent. However, little is known about the lived experiences of those who come back, and even less about the ways in which their return shapes socio-political dynamics on the ground. This book aims to unpack the complexities of migrant transnational experiences as situated in global political and economic processes. In particular, the book takes the case of the return of skilled and educated Somalis from Western Europe and North America, in an attempt to recast the idea of diaspora return and transnational ethnography in a more political light, and to show how these returnees are both subject to and generative of important political conditions that are transforming Somaliland society. Overall, the book captures the complexities of the migrant's position, showing that "return" is rarely permanent, and that success comes from perpetuating the transnational stance. This book will appeal to scholars of migration, diaspora, development and African studies, as well as to those interested in the Somali case specifically, the third biggest community of refugees in the world.

How can we understand the strategic interaction between secessionist movements and sovereign states? A casual review of the many secessionist struggles around the world, both violent and peaceful, shows a variety of types. Some, like Catalonia, are pursuing their ends using combinations of electoral capture and civil demonstrations, just as the Spanish government is working to delegitimize these efforts and defeat them in the polls. Regions like Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh) lack the same institutional connectivity with the larger state of Azerbaijan and are relegated to a de facto (but unrecognized) status where defense, deterrence, and diplomacy are critical. For its part, Azerbaijan invokes its territorial integrity and attempts to deny all forms of recognition to the breakaway region. Other regions from West Papua to Tibet are faced with the hard choice between civil resistance and the use of violence, and their states are keen to suppress their efforts and hide them from the world. What features are common across all of these examples, and how do they differ? This volume synthesizes a number of theories and theoretical approaches that purport to explain the strategies of secession and counter-secession. This is an important topic. Apart from the many legal and cartographical issues that attend secessionist activity, the potential for conflict is a very real concern. Estimates put the share of civil wars driven by secessionism at about 50%. Firstly, and according to Barbara Walter, secessionism is the chief source of violence in the world today. Secondly, secessionism is destabilizing because, at the least, it presents a direct challenge to existing political systems. Yet surprisingly, the strategic interaction between states and secessionists is an area in which we have incomplete understanding.

Somaliland's Private Sector at a Crossroads is the World Bank Group's first effort to undertake a consultative in-depth analysis of the private and financial sector in Somaliland in at least a generation. The objective of the report is to take stock of what has been achieved since the 1999 constitution was approved, provide an assessment of the current evolution of the private sector, and identify some priority policy options and related actions that would best enable the private sector to generate the growth and jobs sought under the Somaliland National Development Plan. The report is structured around the three key sector 'actors' of the economy: enterprises, financial institutions, and the government. This approach has been taken to facilitate a 'political economy' lens into the analysis. The report explores trends in, opportunities for, and impediments to effective government regulation of the private and financial sector and private sector-led economic growth in Somaliland, a relatively new democracy with limited institutional capacities. Drawing heavily on feedback received through an extensive consultative process that was undertaken in tandem with the analysis, the study concludes with recommendations for policy choices for the continued robust growth of the private sector and the evolution of a sounder financial sector.