An evasive business

ENAR

After decades of unbalanced economic growth amid pseudo-liberal reform, the Middle East exploded in the turmoil of the ‘Arab Spring’, and many of the business groups that anchored pre-2011 developments vanished from the political scene, or otherwise recast themselves. Addressing this process, “Business Politics in the Middle East” looks at the role of the private sector in light of the recent regime changes, the role business plays in orienting state policies, lobbying of government by private sector interests and the mechanisms by which regimes seek to keep businesses dependent — important topics that usually do not get much attention. The book also provides insights on some individual businesses, what their impact has been, and what their prospects are. Of particular interest is a discussion of the nexus between business and the Muslim Brotherhood, an especially timely topic in view of this summer’s developments in Egypt. The editors, Steffen Hertog of