Neoliberalism is founded on free trade, the concept of private business, and a minimal role of the state. It is the mental framework of globalization. It also comes with a huge social cost. To offer a comprehensive paradigm to replace neoliberal globalization is deglobalization for the developing countries.

The deglobalization paradigm rests on some solid recommendations for its operationalization. Foremost of these concepts is the return to the production for domestic market as the nucleus of the economy, rather than globalization’s production for export markets.

In order to preserve the community, production of goods should be prioritized at the level of the community and at the national level. Trade policy in the form of quotas and tariffs should be used to ‘protect the local economy from destruction by corporate-subsidized commodities with artificially low prices.’ Industrial policy such as subsidies, tariffs, and trade should be used to ‘revitalize and strengthen the manufacturing sector.’

All economic stakeholders should be considered when making strategic economic decisions. These considerations should not be left to markets or technocrats alone. The business sector should not be held in an ivory tower. ‘Civil society must constantly monitor and supervise the private sector and the state, a process that should be institutionalized.’

Deglobalization emphasizes the upgrading of the quality of life and maximizing equity, a change from the unrelenting focus on growth alone.

Deglobalization aims to empower regions and communities, and consequently diffuse the accumulated power of economic megamonoliths that were created by globalization and that only further impoverished the majority of the world.

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Via Foreign Policy in Focus