The Crisis, Deglobalization and Developing Countries

• Are we living in unprecedented times?
• Have popular anti-globalist movements lead to deglobalization?
• How have the financial crisis and deglobalization impacted developing countries?

In 2008 the International Institute of Social Studies started a research project on the impact of the financial crisis and deglobalization on developing countries and emerging markets.

A multidisciplinary approach was used in investigating how economic backlash influences the (attainability of) the Sustainable Development Goals - in particular in the developing and emerging economies - and how resilience can be improved.

Building on more than a decade of research, Professor Peter van Bergeijk discusses the findings in his book Deglobalization 2.0.

Why is this research relevant?

The share of international trade in world production has increased since 1880, increasing trade, foreign investment, travel and international cooperation. Yet recently we have entered a period of deglobalization, where the openness of the world economy is decreasing. Recent popular anti-globalist movements such as Brexit and groups inspired by Trump have been named as causes of this deglobalization, but, in fact, it might be that they are mere symptoms of deglobalization.

Although these have been called ‘unprecedented times’, recent economic trends could be compared to other ones in the past. Looking into the past can result in a more accurate analysis of deglobalization and its impacts on developing countries and emerging markets.

This research is in line with Sustainable Development Goal 8 on decent work and economic growth, as well as Sustainable Development Goal 17 on revitalizing global partnerships for sustainable development.  

Collaborations

While the project is located within the Development Economics research group, it also includes major contributions from the other ISS research groups and involves the international research network of ISS.

Other outputs include:

• In 2018 a discussion series focusing on deglobalization in the context of the crisis appeared on BLISS, the official weblog of ISS.
• Eri Ikeda (2018) Global and Developing Country Business Cycles. PhD thesis. Erasmus University (public defence on 24 September 2018).
• Peter van Bergeijk (2018) ‘On the brink of deglobalisation… again.’ Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society 11(1), pp: 59-72.
• Peter A.G. van Bergeijk, S. Mansoob Murshed, Raul Caruso A Blind Eye on Tinbergen? Contemporary Implications of Tinbergen’s Normative Vision on Welfare and Security.
• Syed Mansoob Murshed (2018) ‘Economic diplomacy and the liberal peace’in Bergeijk, P.A.G. and S.J.V. Moons (eds) Research Handbook on Economic Diplomacy, pp.258-272.

Funding

The project group attracted external funding from CERES (seed money), EADI, and the Ministry of Economic Affairs and co-financing from INCLUDE, DPRN and HIVOS.