IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jrpoli/v71y2021ics0301420721000064.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Resource curse or rentier peace? The impact of natural resource rents on military expenditure

Author

Listed:
  • Do, Trung K.

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between natural resources rents and military expenditure in a global sample of 163 economies over the period 1996–2017. Integrating and extending existing perspectives on rentier state theory, we show that the impact of natural resource rents on military expenditure is best captured by an inverse U-shape. This result holds when we control for the effects of other determinants of military expenditure, time varying common shocks, and country fixed effects. In addition, the effect is particularly pronounced in Middle East and North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa regions. We further observe that the inverse U-shaped relationship varies with the level of countries’ government effectiveness. Overall, our findings imply that resource-dependent countries use revenue from abundant resources to pacify opposition groups and buy off peace, thereby positively contributing to political stability.

Suggested Citation

  • Do, Trung K., 2021. "Resource curse or rentier peace? The impact of natural resource rents on military expenditure," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jrpoli:v:71:y:2021:i:c:s0301420721000064
    DOI: 10.1016/j.resourpol.2021.101989
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301420721000064
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.resourpol.2021.101989?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Hansen, Bruce E & West, Kenneth D, 2002. "Generalized Method of Moments and Macroeconomics," Journal of Business & Economic Statistics, American Statistical Association, vol. 20(4), pages 460-469, October.
    2. Nikolaos Mylonidis, 2008. "Revisiting The Nexus Between Military Spending And Growth In The European Union," Defence and Peace Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(4), pages 265-272.
    3. Torvik, Ragnar, 2002. "Natural resources, rent seeking and welfare," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 67(2), pages 455-470, April.
    4. Bhattacharyya, Sambit & Hodler, Roland, 2010. "Natural resources, democracy and corruption," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 54(4), pages 608-621, May.
    5. Choi, In, 2001. "Unit root tests for panel data," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 20(2), pages 249-272, April.
    6. Phuc Canh, Nguyen & Trung Thong, Nguyen, 2020. "Nexus between financialisation and natural resources rents: Empirical evidence in a global sample," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    7. Sachs, J-D & Warner, A-M, 1995. "Natural Resource Abundance and Economic Growth," Papers 517a, Harvard - Institute for International Development.
    8. Albalate, Daniel & Bel, Germà & Elias, Ferran, 2012. "Institutional determinants of military spending," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 40(2), pages 279-290.
    9. J. Paul Dunne & Sam Perlo-Freeman & Ron Smith, 2008. "The Demand For Military Expenditure In Developing Countries: Hostility Versus Capability," Defence and Peace Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(4), pages 293-302.
    10. Pantelis Kalaitzidakis & Vangelis Tzouvelekas, 2011. "Military Spending And The Growth‐Maximizing Allocation Of Public Capital: A Cross‐Country Empirical Analysis," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 49(4), pages 1029-1041, October.
    11. Alguacil, M. & Cuadros, A. & Orts, V., 2011. "Inward FDI and growth: The role of macroeconomic and institutional environment," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 33(3), pages 481-496, May.
    12. Hannah Galvin, 2003. "The impact of defence spending on the economic growth of developing countries: A cross-section study," Defence and Peace Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 14(1), pages 51-59.
    13. Matthias Basedau & Jann Lay, 2009. "Resource Curse or Rentier Peace? The Ambiguous Effects of Oil Wealth and Oil Dependence on Violent Conflict," Journal of Peace Research, Peace Research Institute Oslo, vol. 46(6), pages 757-776, November.
    14. M. Hashem Pesaran, 2007. "A simple panel unit root test in the presence of cross-section dependence," Journal of Applied Econometrics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 22(2), pages 265-312.
    15. Nasser Al-Mawali, 2015. "Do Natural Resources of Rentier States Promote Military Expenditures? Evidence from GCC Countries," Journal of Economic and Financial Studies (JEFS), LAR Center Press, vol. 3(3), pages 49-53, June.
    16. Guan, Jialin & Kirikkaleli, Dervis & Bibi, Ayesha & Zhang, Weike, 2020. "Natural resources rents nexus with financial development in the presence of globalization: Is the “resource curse” exist or myth?," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    17. Benoit, Emile, 1978. "Growth and Defense in Developing Countries," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 26(2), pages 271-280, January.
    18. Nickell, Stephen J, 1981. "Biases in Dynamic Models with Fixed Effects," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 49(6), pages 1417-1426, November.
    19. Doytch, Nadia & Uctum, Merih, 2011. "Does the worldwide shift of FDI from manufacturing to services accelerate economic growth? A GMM estimation study," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 30(3), pages 410-427, April.
    20. Ampofo, Gideon Kwaku Minua & Cheng, Jinhua & Asante, Daniel Akwasi & Bosah, Philip, 2020. "Total natural resource rents, trade openness and economic growth in the top mineral-rich countries: New evidence from nonlinear and asymmetric analysis," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    21. Gupta, Sanjeev & de Mello, Luiz & Sharan, Raju, 2001. "Corruption and military spending," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 17(4), pages 749-777, November.
    22. Asif, Muhammad & Khan, Khan Burhan & Anser, Muhammad Khalid & Nassani, Abdelmohsen A. & Abro, Muhammad Moinuddin Qazi & Zaman, Khalid, 2020. "Dynamic interaction between financial development and natural resources: Evaluating the ‘Resource curse’ hypothesis," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    23. Paul Dunne & Sam Perlo-Freeman, 2003. "The Demand for Military Spending in Developing Countries," International Review of Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 17(1), pages 23-48.
    24. Amiri, Hossein & Samadian, Farzaneh & Yahoo, Masoud & Jamali, Seyed Jafar, 2019. "Natural resource abundance, institutional quality and manufacturing development: Evidence from resource-rich countries," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 550-560.
    25. Chen, Pei-Fen & Lee, Chien-Chiang & Chiu, Yi-Bin, 2014. "The nexus between defense expenditure and economic growth: New global evidence," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 474-483.
    26. Bakirtas, Tahsin & Akpolat, Ahmet Gökçe, 2020. "The relationship between crude oil exports, crude oil prices and military expenditures in some OPEC countries," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    27. Hamid E. Ali & Omnia A. Abdellatif, 2015. "Military Expenditures and Natural Resources: Evidence from Rentier States in the Middle East and North Africa," Defence and Peace Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 26(1), pages 5-13, February.
    28. Alptekin, Aynur & Levine, Paul, 2012. "Military expenditure and economic growth: A meta-analysis," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 28(4), pages 636-650.
    29. Maizels, Alfred & Nissanke, Machiko K., 1986. "The determinants of military expenditures in developing countries," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 14(9), pages 1125-1140, September.
    30. Abdulahi, Mohamued Elyas & Shu, Yang & Khan, Muhammad Asif, 2019. "Resource rents, economic growth, and the role of institutional quality: A panel threshold analysis," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 293-303.
    31. J. Paul Dunne & Sam Perlo-Freeman, 2003. "The demand for military spending in developing countries: A dynamic panel analysis," Defence and Peace Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 14(6), pages 461-474.
    32. Anser, Muhammad Khalid & Yousaf, Zahid & Nassani, Abdelmohsen A. & Vo, Xuan Vinh & Zaman, Khalid, 2020. "Evaluating ‘natural resource curse’ hypothesis under sustainable information technologies: A case study of Saudi Arabia," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    33. Julide Yildirim & Selami Sezgin & Nadir Ocal, 2005. "Military Expenditure And Economic Growth In Middle Eastern Countries: A Dynamic Panel Data Analysis," Defence and Peace Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 16(4), pages 283-295.
    34. Farzanegan, Mohammad Reza & Lessmann, Christian & Markwardt, Gunther, 2018. "Natural resource rents and internal conflicts: Can decentralization lift the curse?," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 42(2), pages 186-205.
    35. Mauro, Paolo, 1998. "Corruption and the composition of government expenditure," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(2), pages 263-279, June.
    36. E. Desli & A. Gkoulgkoutsika & C. Katrakilidis, 2017. "Investigating the Dynamic Interaction between Military Spending and Economic Growth," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(3), pages 511-526, August.
    37. Judson, Ruth A. & Owen, Ann L., 1999. "Estimating dynamic panel data models: a guide for macroeconomists," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 65(1), pages 9-15, October.
    38. Julide Yildirim & Selami Sezgin, 2005. "Democracy and Military Expenditure: A Cross-Country Evidence," Transition Studies Review, Springer;Central Eastern European University Network (CEEUN), vol. 12(1), pages 93-100, July.
    39. M. Dolores Gadea & Eva Pardos & Claudia Perez-Fornies, 2004. "A Long-Run Analysis Of Defence Spending In The Nato Countries (1960-99)," Defence and Peace Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 15(3), pages 231-249.
    40. Paul Collier & Anke Hoeffler, 2007. "Unintended Consequences: Does Aid Promote Arms Races?," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 69(1), pages 1-27, February.
    41. Pavel Yakovlev, 2007. "Arms Trade, Military Spending, And Economic Growth," Defence and Peace Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(4), pages 317-338.
    42. Todd Sandler & Justin George, 2016. "Military Expenditure Trends for 1960–2014 and What They Reveal," Global Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 7(2), pages 174-184, May.
    43. Sam Perlo-Freeman & Jennifer Brauner, 2012. "Natural resources and military expenditure: The case of Algeria," Economics of Peace and Security Journal, EPS Publishing, vol. 7(1), pages 15-21, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Ferreira, João J. & Gomes, Sofia & Lopes, João M. & Zhang, Justin Z., 2023. "Ticking time bombs: The MENA and SSA regions' geopolitical risks," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 85(PA).
    2. Ibrahim, Ridwan Lanre & Al-mulali, Usama & Ozturk, Ilhan & Bello, Ajide Kazeem & Raimi, Lukman, 2022. "On the criticality of renewable energy to sustainable development: Do green financial development, technological innovation, and economic complexity matter for China?," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 199(C), pages 262-277.
    3. Tarek Ben Hassen, 2022. "A Transformative State in the Wake of COVID-19: What Is Needed to Enable Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and Education in Qatar?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-24, June.
    4. Kamguia, Brice & Keneck-Massil, Joseph & Nvuh-Njoya, Youssouf & Tadadjeu, Sosson, 2022. "Natural resources and innovation: Is the R&D sector cursed too?," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sajjad. F. Dizaji & Mohammad Reza Farzanegan, 2018. "Do sanctions reduce the military spending in Iran?," MAGKS Papers on Economics 201831, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, Department of Economics (Volkswirtschaftliche Abteilung).
    2. Chen, Pei-Fen & Lee, Chien-Chiang & Chiu, Yi-Bin, 2014. "The nexus between defense expenditure and economic growth: New global evidence," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 474-483.
    3. Albalate, Daniel & Bel, Germà & Elias, Ferran, 2012. "Institutional determinants of military spending," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 40(2), pages 279-290.
    4. Sefa Awaworyi Churchill & Siew Ling Yew, 2018. "The effect of military expenditure on growth: an empirical synthesis," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 55(3), pages 1357-1387, November.
    5. Johannes Blum, 2021. "Democracy’s third wave and national defense spending," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 189(1), pages 183-212, October.
    6. Khalid Zaman, 2019. "Does higher military spending affect business regulatory and growth specific measures? Evidence from the group of seven (G-7) countries," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 36(1), pages 323-348, April.
    7. Njamen Kengdo Arsène Aurelien & Nchofoung Tii N. & Kos A Mougnol Alice, 2023. "Determinants of Military Spending in Africa: Do Institutions Matter?," Peace Economics, Peace Science, and Public Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 29(4), pages 401-440, December.
    8. Töngür, Ünal & Hsu, Sara & Elveren, Adem Yavuz, 2015. "Military expenditures and political regimes: Evidence from global data, 1963–2000," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 68-79.
    9. Luqman, Muhammad & Antonakakis, Nikolaos, 2021. "Guns better than butter in Pakistan? The dilemma of military expenditure, human development, and economic growth," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 173(C).
    10. Paula Gómez-Trueba Santamaría & Alfredo Arahuetes García & Tomás Curto González, 2021. "A tale of five stories: Defence spending and economic growth in NATO´s countries," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 16(1), pages 1-22, January.
    11. Seemab Gillani & Muhammad Nouman Shafiq & Tusawar Iftikhar Ahmad, 2019. "Military Expenditures and Health Outcomes: A Global Perspective," iRASD Journal of Energy and Environment, International Research Association for Sustainable Development (iRASD), vol. 1(1), pages 1-20, June.
    12. Khan, Muhammad Atif & Gu, Lulu & Khan, Muhammad Asif & Oláh, Judit, 2020. "Natural resources and financial development: The role of institutional quality," Journal of Multinational Financial Management, Elsevier, vol. 56(C).
    13. Xinyi Wang & Na Hou & Bo Chen, 2023. "Democracy, military expenditure and economic growth: A heterogeneous perspective," Defence and Peace Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 34(8), pages 1039-1070, November.
    14. Seemab Gillani & Muhammad Nouman Shafiq & Tusawar Iftikhar Ahmad, 2019. "Military Expenditures and Health Outcomes: A Global Perspective," iRASD Journal of Economics, International Research Alliance for Sustainable Development (iRASD), vol. 1(1), pages 1-20, June.
    15. Vincenzo Bove & Roberto Nisticò, 2014. "Coups d’état and defense spending: a counterfactual analysis," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 161(3), pages 321-344, December.
    16. Bove, Vincenzo & Nisticò, Roberto, 2014. "Military in politics and budgetary allocations," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 42(4), pages 1065-1078.
    17. E. Desli & A. Gkoulgkoutsika & C. Katrakilidis, 2017. "Investigating the Dynamic Interaction between Military Spending and Economic Growth," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(3), pages 511-526, August.
    18. Abdul Rehman & Hengyun Ma & Rafael Alvarado & Fayyaz Ahmad, 2023. "The nexus of military, final consumption expenditures, total reserves, and economic development of Pakistan," Economic Change and Restructuring, Springer, vol. 56(3), pages 1753-1776, June.
    19. Rafał Woźniak & Jacek Lewkowicz, 2023. "Can We Have More Butter and Guns Simultaneously? An Endogeneity Perspective," Gospodarka Narodowa. The Polish Journal of Economics, Warsaw School of Economics, issue 2, pages 28-46.
    20. Phuc Canh, Nguyen & Trung Thong, Nguyen, 2020. "Nexus between financialisation and natural resources rents: Empirical evidence in a global sample," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Natural resource; Rents; Military expenditure; Economic growth; Region; Government effectiveness;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H56 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - National Security and War
    • O13 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Agriculture; Natural Resources; Environment; Other Primary Products
    • O57 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Comparative Studies of Countries
    • Q32 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Nonrenewable Resources and Conservation - - - Exhaustible Resources and Economic Development

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jrpoli:v:71:y:2021:i:c:s0301420721000064. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/inca/30467 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.