Globalisation and the state revisited: A view from provincial Vietnam

Abstract

The article considers the changing nature of the state in an era of globalisation, exploring the impact on the state of changes in cross-border flows and the rise of private and transnational actors. Presenting data from two Vietnamese border provinces, the article paints a picture of a relatively powerful state, which appears to be extending its reach in some areas. Asking how we reconcile this with increased cross-border flows and the rise of private and transnational actors, the article suggests that where sub-national governments are less integrated in global financial architecture, and where domestic private capital has close relations with the state, the impact in terms of precipitating a diminution of state power is likely to be less. Equally, the article argues that there is a tendency in some of the literature to overstate the influence of foreign private capital and transnational institutions on the state in ways which seem inappropriate away from the capital city.

Key words:

• Globalisation
• state
• local state
• cross-border flows
• private actors
• transnational actors

Notes

¹ On this point, I am grateful to Matthew Watson for drawing to my attention the work of Cerny (1990 and 2000) on the “competition state” as an example of someone whose work has been criticised for universalising the development of the state in advanced Western industrialised economies into a thesis on the state everywhere.

² Lao Cai and Tay Ninh are both largely rural provinces with a population of 640,000 and one million respectively (2003 data). Both provinces have seen some growth in industry – and mining in the case of Lao Cai – over the last decade, but industry still only comprises around 20% of constant price GDP (2000 data) – see General Statistics Office, 2001 and 2004.

³ The Greater Mekong sub-region (GMS) encompasses countries contiguous to the Mekong river, namely Cambodia, Laos, Burma, Thailand, Vietnam, and China's Yunnan province. It is the label of choice for this area of the multilateral institutions, such as the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank. For background, see Oehlers (2006) and the ADB site http://www.adb.org/GMS/program.asp (downloaded 10 March 2006).

⁴ The difference can largely be explained by reference to the existence of a large mining sector in Lao Cai province.

⁵ Representative data is contained in Table 5. The data's significance is discussed later in the article.

⁶ The issues surrounding what is actually being bolstered (state power or something else?) are complex. However, given the blurring of public and private, it makes sense in relation to my data to argue that there were benefits for the public activities of state institutions stemming from their business activities even if there were private benefits as well. That is, those associated with money or wealth creation are strengthened both in their public- and their private-regarding activities even if in reality there is no clear distinction between them. Such a position underlines the way in which it is often difficult – and inadvisable – to talk in terms of state “strengthening” or state “weakening.”

⁷ Tay Ninh proved to be one of the more sensitive provinces in Vietnam where I have conducted research. It was suggested to me that this was because of the presence of the Cao Dai religious sect in the province. The Cao Dai religion has it headquarters in the province and historically has had poor relations with the Communist government. However, in my case, once the authorities had convinced themselves that I was not covertly researching religion, I was largely left to my own devices.

⁸ High levels of smuggling and weaknesses in data collection mean that official figures are likely to underestimate the true extent of trade.

⁹ This likely reflects a range of factors from the high risks associated with start-up businesses, an inhospitable business climate for private sector firms, and the impact of the Asian financial crisis in 1997-98 (Webster and Taussig, 1999).

¹⁰ See General Statistical Office (2001). Based on figures for cumulative approved foreign investment, Tay Ninh and Lao Cai ranked seventeenth and thirty-sixth out of Vietnam's 64 provinces and municipalities. The figures cover the period from 1988 to mid-2003 Vietnam Investment Review, 2003, p. 20.

¹¹ The websites of the Asian Development Bank, the United Nations and the US State Department contain further discussion of these issues. Among the work being carried out in the GMS under the auspices of the Asian Development Bank are projects on the environment, migration, trafficking and HIV/AIDs. For the ADB, see http://www.adb.org/GMS/gmsprog10.asp (downloaded 10 March 2006). See also the US State Department's Trafficking in Persons Report and the work of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, http://www.state.gov/g/tip/rls/tiprpt/2004/33191.htm (downloaded 10 March 2006) and the UN site at http://www.unodc.org/unodc/index.html (downloaded 10 March 2006).

¹² There has been a proliferation of internet cafes in the provincial capital and key tourist spots in Lao Cai and Tay Ninh in recent years, but elsewhere provision is low. However, few people enter or leave the province by air.

¹³ Standard & Poor's, Fitch and Moody's issue regular reports about Vietnam.