Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-j824f Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-10T17:09:00.476Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Economic institutions and institutional change in Turkey during the neoliberal era

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 March 2015

İzak Atiyas*
Affiliation:
Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Sabancı University, 34956 Orhanlı, Tuzla-İstanbul, Turkey, izak@sabanciuniv.edu

Abstract

In the last three decades, the Turkish economy has become much more open and market-oriented. This paper provides an account of the changes in the underlying economic institutions that have accompanied this transformation. In particular, it assesses whether or not new economic institutions have emerged that constrain the discretionary powers of the executive in the area of economic policy and whether institutional change has resulted in a more rule-based and transparent policy framework. The story that broadly emerges is that the first two decades of the neoliberal era were predominantly a period of increased discretion at the expense of rules. By contrast, after the crisis of 2000-2001 one witnesses a substantial delegation of decision-making power to relatively independent agencies, and the establishment of rules that constrain the discretion of the executive. But this transformation is not uniform across sectors, and there are divergences between the de jure rules and their de facto implementation. Moreover, there are also examples that do not fit the general trend, especially in the case of the construction industry. Finally, recent signs suggest that the government may be having second thoughts about the “excessive” independence of regulatory and policy making bodies.

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © New Perspectives on Turkey 2012

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Acemoğlu, Daron and Robinson, james. The Role of Institutions in Growth and Development, Working Paper No.10: Commission on Growth and Development, 2008.Google Scholar
Airaudo, Marc, Kemal, Derviş, Daniel, Gros, Faik, Öztrak, Fırat, Bayar and Işık, Yusuf. Stabilising Stabilisation, EU-Turkey Working Papers No. 7: Center for European Studies, 2004.Google Scholar
Alper, C. Emre and Öniş, Ziya. “The Turkish Banking System and the IMF in the Age of Capital Account Liberalization.” New Perspectives on Turkey, no. 30 (2004): 2555.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Atiyas, Izak. “Uneven governance and fiscal failure: The adjustment experience in Turkey.” In Governance, Leadership and Communication: Building Constituencies for Economic Reform, edited by Frischtak, Leila and Atiyas, Izak, 285318. Washington, DC: The World Bank, 1996.Google Scholar
Atiyas, Izak. Elektrik Sektöründe Serbestlesme ve Düzenleyici Reform. İstanbul: TESEV, 2005.Google Scholar
Atiyas, Izak. “Recent Privatization Experience of Turkey — A Reappraisal.” In Turkey and the Global Economy: Neo-Liberal Restructuring and Integration in the Post-Crisis Era, edited by Öniş, Ziya and Şenses, Fikret, 101122. London: Routledge, 2009.Google Scholar
Atiyas, Izak. “Risks, Incentives and Financing Models of Nuclear Power Plants: International Experiences and the Akkuyu Model.” In The Turkish Model for Transition to Nuclear Power, edited by Ülgen, Sinan, 113134. İstanbul: EDAM, 2011.Google Scholar
Atiyas, Izak and Dogan, Pinar. “Glass half empty? Politics and institutions in the liberalization of the fixed line telecommunications industry in Turkey.” In Understanding the Process of Economic Change in Turkey, edited by Çetin, Tamer and Yilmaz, Feridun, 261284. New York: Nova Science Publishers, 2010.Google Scholar
Atiyas, Izak and Ferhat, Emil. “Political Economy of Governance Failures, Crises and Opportunities for Reform.” In Turkey Country Profile. Cairo: Economic Research Forum, 2005.Google Scholar
Atiyas, Izak and Hasan, Ersel. “The Impact of Financial Reform: The Turkish Experience.” In Financial Reform: Theory and Experience, edited by Caprio, Ģerard, Atiyas, Izak and Hanson, James A.103139. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1994.Google Scholar
Atiyas, IzakGürcan, Gülen and Çetin, Tamer. Reforming Turkish Energy Markets. New York: Springer, 2012.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Atiyas, IzakYasemin, Bal GündüzFerhat, Emil, Can Memduh, Erdem, and Didem, Bahar Özgün. Fiscal Adjustment in Turkey: The Role of Quasi-Fiscal Activities and Institutional Reform, Araştırma Inceleme Dizisi No: 22: TC Hazine Müsteşarlığı, 1999.Google Scholar
Bakir, Caner and Öniş, Ziya. “The Regulatory State and Turkish Banking Reforms in the Age of Post¬Washington Consensus.” Development and Change 41, no. 1 (2010): 77106.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Balaban, Osman. “The Negative Effects of Construction Boom on Urban Planning and Environment in Turkey: Unraveling the Role of the Public Sector.” Habitat International, no. 36 (2012): 2635.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dedeoğlu, Emin. How Does the Fiscal Rule Work? First The Public Financial Management System Shall Be Adapted to Fiscal Rule, TEPAV Policy Note: TEPAV, 2010.Google Scholar
Denizer, CevdetGültekin, Mustafa N. and Gültekin, Nihat Bülent. “Distorted Incentives and Financial Development in Turkey.” (2000), http://go.worldbank.org/WVQQA3ETYo.Google Scholar
Dünya, , January 24, 2012.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ercan, Metin R. and Öniş, Ziya. “Turkish Privatization: Institutions and Dilemmas.” Turkish Studies 2, no. 1 (2001): 109134.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ersel, Hasan. “Finansal Istikrarın Sağlanması Için Nasıl Bir Mekanizma Tasarlanabilir?” iktisat Işletme ve Finans 27, no. 315 (2012): 3749.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ersel, Hasan. Managing Financial Liberalization in Turkey: Consistent Banking Regulation, Third Mediterranean Development Forum Financing Development Workshop Paper. Cairo, 2000.Google Scholar
Ersel, Hasan. “The Timing of Capital Account Liberalization-the Turkish Experience.” New Perspectives on Turkey, no. 15 (1996): 4564.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ersel, Hasan. “Turkish Public Finance in the Post-Crisis Era.” In Turkey and the Global Economy: Neo-Liberal Restructuring and Integration in the Post-Crisis Era, edited by Öniş, Ziya and Şenses, Fikret3449. London: Routledge, 2009.Google Scholar
Ersel, Hasan and özatay, Fatih. “Inflation Targeting in Turkey.” Paper presented at the Workshop: “Monetary Policy and Inflation Targeting,” Tunis, Tunisia, October 2425, 2008.Google Scholar
Gülhan, Sinan T.Devlet Müteahhitlerinden Gayrimenkul Geliştiricilerine, Türkiye’de Kentsel Rant ve Bir Meta Olarak Konut Üreticiliği: Konuta Hücum Birikim, October 2011, 2733.Google Scholar
Hagen, Jürgen von. “Political Economy of Fiscal Institutions.” In The Oxford Handbook of Political Economy, edited by Weingast, Barry R. and Wittman, Donald A., 464478. New York: Oxford University Press, 2006.Google Scholar
Heper, Metin. “The State and Debureaucratization: The Case of Turkey.” International Social Science Journal, no. 42 (1990): 605615.Google Scholar
Heper, Metin and Fuat, Keyman. “Double-Faced State: Political Patronage and the Consolidation of Democracy in Turkey.” Middle Eastern Studies 34, no. 4 (1998): 259277.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Majone, Giandomenico. Regulating Europe. London: Routledge, 1996.Google Scholar
North, Douglass C.Institutions, Institutional Change, and Economic Performance. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1990.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
OECD. Competition Law and Policy in Turkey. Paris: OECD, 2005.Google Scholar
OECD. OECD Economic Surveys 2001–2002 Turkey. Paris: OECD, 2002.Google Scholar
OECD. OECD Economic Surveys: Turkey 2008. Paris: OECD, 2008.Google Scholar
OECD. OECD Economic Surveys: Turkey 2012. Paris: OECD, 2012.Google Scholar
Ozel, Isik. “The Politics of De-delegation: Regulatory (In)dependence in Turkey.” Regulation of Governance 6, no. 1 (2012): 119129.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ozel, Isik and Atiyas, Izak. “Regulatory Diffusion in Turkey: A Cross-sectoral Assessment.” In The Political Economy of Regulation in Turkey, edited by Çetin, Tamer and Oğuz, Fuat5174. New York: Springer, 2011.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Öniş, Ziya. “Power, Interests and Coalitions: The Political Economy of Mass Privatisation in Turkey.” Third World Quarterly 32, no. 4 (2011): 707724.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
özatay, Fatih, Sak, Güven, Garber, Peter and Ghosh, Atish. “Banking Sector Fragility and Turkey’s 2000–01 Financial Crisis.” In Brookings Trade Forum 2002, edited by Collins, Susan M. and Rodrik, Dani, 121172. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press, 2002.Google Scholar
özgönül, Emin and Sağlar, Fikri. Kod Adı Susurluk ‘Derin’ Ilişkiler Bir Kamyon Bin Kaset. İstanbul: Boyut Yayınevi, 2001.Google Scholar
Sönmez, Ümit. “The Political Economy of Market and Regulatory Reforms in Turkey: The Logic and Unintended Consequences of Ad-hoc Strategies.” New Political Economy 16, no. 1 (2011): 101130.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
van Rijckeghem, Caroline. Turkish Debt: How We Got There, [mimeograph], İstanbul: TESEV, 2003.Google Scholar
Yükseler, Zafer. Gayrimenkul Sektöründe Gelişmeler ve Olası Sorunlar. Ankara: Türkiye Cumhuriyet Merkez Bankası, 2009.Google Scholar