The political economy of a de facto state: the importance of local stakeholders in the case of Abkhazia

Abstract

Between 1993 and 2008, the economy of Abkhazia was subjected to a multiplicity of internal and external influences. According to the authorities of the de facto state, its stunted growth was a consequence of what they branded as the ‘Georgian embargo’. However, not only was Russia as strong an influencing actor, but the picture is also skewed if local stakeholders are not taken into consideration. Far from being passive recipients or targets of external pressures, local elites shaped the Abkhaz economy, while financially and politically profiting from it. In this paper, this is shown by tracing the evolution of the Abkhaz economic development through time and underlining its spatial characteristics. Processes of isolation, progressive opening, economic transformation and trade are deconstructed to demonstrate the gap between practice and discourse, and to unveil the key role played by local stakeholders.