Monday, June 07, 2004
Francis Fukuyama's new book
Fukuyama announced his new book recently, State-Building: Governance and World Order in the 21st Century.
Francis Fukuyama famously predicted "the end of history" with the ascendancy of liberal democracy and global capitalism. The topic of his latest book is, therefore, surprising: the building of new nation-states. The end of history was never an automatic procedure, Fukuyama argues, and the well-governed polity was always its necessary precondition. "Weak or failed states are the source of many of the world's most serious problems," he believes.
He traces what we know—and more often don’t know--about how to transfer functioning public institutions to developing countries in ways that will leave something of permanent benefit to the citizens of the countries concerned. These are important lessons, especially as the United States wrestles with its responsibilities in Afghanistan, Iraq, and beyond. In this book Fukuyama rejects the notion that there can be a science of public administration.
Comments-[ comments.]
Fukuyama announced his new book recently, State-Building: Governance and World Order in the 21st Century.
Francis Fukuyama famously predicted "the end of history" with the ascendancy of liberal democracy and global capitalism. The topic of his latest book is, therefore, surprising: the building of new nation-states. The end of history was never an automatic procedure, Fukuyama argues, and the well-governed polity was always its necessary precondition. "Weak or failed states are the source of many of the world's most serious problems," he believes.
He traces what we know—and more often don’t know--about how to transfer functioning public institutions to developing countries in ways that will leave something of permanent benefit to the citizens of the countries concerned. These are important lessons, especially as the United States wrestles with its responsibilities in Afghanistan, Iraq, and beyond. In this book Fukuyama rejects the notion that there can be a science of public administration.
