Dr. Joseph Siegle, Director of Research at the Africa Center, has co-authored the recently released The Democracy Advantage, which analyzes the superior development and security track record democracies have realized over the past five decades relative to countries with closed political systems.
The Democracy Advantage, Revised Edition
How Democracies Promote Prosperity and Peace
By Morton H. Halperin, Joseph Siegle, Michael M. Weinstein
[HTML] The Democracy Advantage provides an empirically-grounded analysis of the consistently positive development track record of poor countries with democratic governments. Drawing on cross-national analysis from the past 50 years and contemporary case studies, the book connects the dots of how democracy and development contribute to lower levels of intrastate conflict and popular support for extremist ideologies. These findings provide a foundation for a series of policy recommendations for how democracy can become a more central feature of U.S. and international engagement in the developing world.
Madeline Albright, former U.S. Secretary of State, said of the book, “This valuable and timely volume obliterates the myth—beloved of dictators—that democracy is somehow the enemy of development rather than an essential ally. Here is a treasury of evidence that freedom is not only right—it works.”
