Omar S. Dahi

Recent and Upcoming Courses

• Special Projects

• South-South Relations

  The last thirty years have witnessed a resurgence in political and economic cooperation among the developing nations of the South. This course examines recent changes in the international economy, with a special focus on South-South relations. Some questions we will consider are: What will be the impact of the rise of Third World Capitalism on the global economy? What will the global economy look like when we emerge from the current financial crises? Does South-South cooperation hold the promise of an alternative model to neo-liberal globalization or is it best thought of as unity against Northern hegemony? How has colonialism previously and economic liberalization more recently changed the structure and pattern of trade among developing countries? In the course we will trace the historical patterns of trade among developing nations since the colonial era and then look closely at South-South cooperation in the post-WWII period.

• Middle East Economies

  The Uprisings that swept the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region have had a profound impact on the political economy of authoritarian regimes within the region as well as academic frameworks used to explain them. However, the optimism of the Arab uprisings was quickly replaced with more sober and pragmatic thinking about the future brought upon by the realities of regime resilience, the challenges of democratic transformation, and the myriad domestic and international forces engaged in counter-revolutionary activity. This course examines the economics of the MENA region and asks the following questions: Do the uprisings represent failures of the developmental state, neo-liberalism, or authoritarian regimes? How does human development within MENA compare to other regions in the developing world? To what extent does either religion or oil explain economic outcomes? What impact will the upheaval associated with the uprisings themselves have on the economies of the different countries? What are the long-term legacies of the Arab Uprisings? The course will explore these questions through theoretical readings, case studies from Syria, Egypt, and the Gulf.