Is Democracy a Prerequisite for Economic Growth? A Sectoral Analysis of Authoritarian Capitalism in Rwanda’s Coffee Sector
Alessandra Costagliola
Global Politics Review
Vol. 6, no. 1-2 (2020): 66-76.
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.3890856
GPR ID: 2464-9929_v06_i1-2_p066
Received: February 16, 2020. Accepted: May 27, 2020. Published: June 15, 2020.
ABSTRACT: The question of whether democracy is needed as a prerequisite for growth is highly debated within the development field. The rapid growth of the East Asian “miracle” economies has questioned the necessity of democracy in producing growth outcomes, with growing literature supporting the notion of authoritarian-led growth. This paper will analyze the evidence behind the widening acceptance of authoritarian capitalism and its application in Rwanda’s coffee sector. The findings will indicate that although democracy is indeed not a prerequisite for growth, long term economic sustainability is reliant on continued liberalization of markets and improved personal freedoms, ultimately leading to a transition to democracy.
Keywords: Rwanda, democracy, economic growth, authoritarian capitalism, coffee.
Copyright by the Author. This is an Open Access article licensed by Global Politics Review under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 License 
.
DOWNLOAD PDF
Loading...
Reload document 
Open in new tab