Conceptualising State Capacity: Comparing Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan

• Published in: Political studies Vol. 52; no. 4; pp. 685 - 708
• Main Authors: Cummings, Sally N., Nørgaard, Ole
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.12.2004; SAGE Publications; Political Studies Association; Sage Publications Ltd
• Series: Political Studies
• Subjects: Comparative analysis; Conceptualization; Economic Development; Economic reform; Kazakhstan; Kyrgyzstan; Liberalization; Political Development; Politics; Post-communist societies; Postcommunist Societies; Reform; Reforms; State; State Formation; State Role; Kazakhstan; Kyrgyzstan
• ISSN: 0032-3217; 1467-9248
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9248.2004.00503.x

Strengthening the state is central to the post-communist reform agenda. Here, state capacity combines organisational, material and social resources and is conceptualised along four dimensions: ideational, political, technical and implementational. This conceptualisation is applied to a comparative, survey-based analysis in 2002 of 125 medium-ranking officials in two post-communist Central Asian countries, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. The findings reveal that although Kazakhstan's controlled economic reform programme and natural resources have placed it in a stronger position to develop its state capacity, important ideational, political and implementational problems pose long-term obstacles for reform. In turn, Kyrgyzstan's early liberalisation in the absence of economic and social resources may be serving to undermine its state capacity.