Privatization

Privatization: Successes and Failures provides the first broad assessment of the benefits and costs of privatization policies around the world for over the past twenty years. Privatization is an important and controversial policy issue, and unlike previous studies, this book's goal is not to champion privatization policies but rather to undertake a deep and careful evaluation of them. -- Patrick Bolton, David Zalaznick Professor of Business, Columbia University

Looks at the successes and failures of privatization and the reasons for each, setting out alternative frameworks for countries in Africa and other regions that seek to develop privatization policy and programs.The privatization of large state-owned enterprises is one of the most radical policy developments of the last quarter century. Right-wing governments have privatized in an effort to decrease the size of government, while left-wing governments have privatized either to compensate for the failures of state-owned firms or to generate revenues. In this way, privatization has spread from Europe to Latin America, from Asia to Africa, reaching its zenith with Central and Eastern Europe's transition from socialism to capitalism. In many countries state ownership has been an important tool in bringing cheap water, energy, and transport to poorer segments of the population. In other instances, it has sponsored aggressive cutbacks, corruption, and cronyism. Privatization: Successes and Failures evaluates the practices and results of privatization in Eastern Europe, Africa, Latin America, and Asia. Featuring the world's leading economists and experts on privatization, this volume offers a broad and balanced analysis of specific privatization projects and uncovers some surprising trends. Partial privatization, for example, tends to be more widespread than one might think, and the effects of privatization on efficiency are generally mixed but rarely negative. Also, while privatization appears uncontroversial in competitive sectors, it becomes increasingly complex in more monopolistic sectors where good regulation is crucial. Privatization concludes with alternative frameworks for countries in Africa and other regions that seek to develop privatization policy and programs.