globalization, governance, the role of non-state actors

385 Pages·2011·2.31 MB·English

GLOBALIZATION, GOVERNANCE, THE ROLE OF NON-STATE ACTORS:
TOBB AS A CASE STUDY

A THESIS SUBMITTED TO
THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES
OF
MIDDLE EAST TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY

BY
DURU ÖZKABAN

IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS
FOR
THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
IN THE DEPARTMENT OF
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

SEPTEMBER 2011
Approval of the Graduate School of Social Sciences

Prof. Dr. Meliha Altunışık
Director

I certify that this thesis satisfies all the requirements as a thesis for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy.

Prof. Dr. Hüseyin Bağcı
Head of Department

This is to certify that we have read this thesis and that in our opinion it is fully
adequate, in scope and quality, as a thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Faruk Yalvaç
Supervisor

Examining Committee Members
Prof. Dr. Atila Eralp (METU, IR)
Assoc. Prof Dr. Faruk Yalvaç (METU, IR)
Assoc. Prof. Dr Fatih Tayfur (METU, IR)
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Galip Yalman (METU, ADM)
Assist. Prof. Dr. Sait Akşit (GEDIZ, INTM)
I hereby declare that all information in this document has been obtained and
presented in accordance with academic rules and ethical conduct. I also declare
that, as required by these rules and conduct, I have fully cited and referenced all
material and results that are not original to this work.

Name, Last name: Duru Özkaban

Signature:

iii
ABSTRACT

GLOBALIZATION, GOVERNANCE, THE ROLE OF NON-STATE ACTORS:
TOBB AS A CASE STUDY

Özkaban, Duru
Ph.D., Department of International Relations
Supervisor: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Faruk Yalvaç

September 2011, 363 pages

This thesis examines TOBB within the global and national socioeconomic context in
which it operates, focusing on the last decade. Though states are the main
governing bodies and important actors, the role of non-state actors (NSAs) is
becoming increasingly important as they are able to intervene and influence policy
decisions through various activities. They matter in issues regarding globalization
and governance. They interact with various other actors, they have a role in
governance schemes and they may have the capability to effect acceleration of
globalization. In return they are also affected by this process.

For this research project TOBB has been chosen as a case study to evaluate the
impact of such institutions in this process. Information on TOBB, including its
chamber features, its interactions in governance, its special projects, and its view-
point (made public through certain declarations and criteria), the economic
platforms in which it participates, its contribution to G20 meetings and
establishment of C20 all show that TOBB has taken an active stand in this process
during the last decade. The context within which TOBB operates is an enabling
one, both domestically and internationally. A comparison of TOBB with FICCI, its
organizational counterpart in India, further demonstrates that the overall impact
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of similar institutions, in our case chambers, is larger when the system is taken as a
whole. In this thesis it is argued that TOBB “matters” and is able to intervene and
influence decision making processes.

Keywords: Globalization, Governance, Non-State Actors, Civil Society
Organizations, TOBB.

v
ÖZ

KÜRESELLEŞME, YÖNETİŞİM, DEVLET DIŞI OYUNCULARIN ROLÜ:
TOBB ÖRNEĞİ

Özkaban, Duru
Doktora, Uluslararası İlişkiler Bölümü
Tez Yöneticisi: Doç. Dr. Faruk Yalvaç

Eylül 2011, 363 sayfa

Bu tez TOBB’u, son on yıllık dönemde faaliyetlerini sürdürdüğü küresel ve ulusal
sosyoekonomik çerçevede incelemektedir. Devletler temel yöneticiler ve önemli
oyunculardır, ancak Devlet Dışı Oyuncuların (DDO) rolleri de muhtelif faaliyetleri ile
olaylara müdahil olma ve etkileme kapasiteleri nedeniyle artarak önemli olmaya
başlamıştır. DDO’lar küreselleşme ve yönetişim meselelerinde etkindirler, muhtelif
oyuncularla etkileşim içindedirler, yönetişim düzenlemelerinde rolleri vardır ve
küreselleşmenin ivmesini arttırma kapasitesine sahip olmaları mümkündür. Bu
süreç karşılığında kendileri de etkilenirler.

TOBB bu süreçte benzer kurumların etkisini değerlendirmek için örnek olarak
seçilmiştir. TOBB hakkında, oda nitelikleri dahil bilgiler, yönetişime ilişkin
meselelerdeki etkileşimleri, özel projeleri, kamuya ilan ettiği bazı deklarasyonlar ve
kriterler kanalı ile bilinir olan görüş açısı, yer almakta olduğu ekonomik platformlar,
G20 toplantılarına katkıları ve C20’nin kurulmasında yer alması TOBB’un son on
yılda bu süreçte aktif bir duruş sergilediğinin göstergeleridir. TOBB’un faaliyetlerini
sürdürdüğü kendisini çevreleyen ulusal ve uluslararası bağlam bu aktif duruşa
imkân vermektedir. TOBB’ un Hindistan’daki karşı kuruluşu FICCI ile karşılaştırması,
sistem bir bütün olarak ele alındığında benzer kurumların; bizim örneğimizde
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odaların etkisinin toplamda daha da büyük olacağını kanıtlamaktadır. Bu tez
TOBB’un “önem taşıdığını” ve karar verme süreçlerine müdahale etme ve bu
süreçleri etkileme kapasitesine sahip olduğunu ileri sürmektedir.

Anahtar Kelimeler: Küreselleşme, Yönetişim, Devlet Dışı Oyuncular, Sivil Toplum
Örgütleri, TOBB.

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To my husband Levent Özkaban, to Ufuk and Elif, and to the memories of my
very special parents Öznur and Nihat Duruman.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The author wishes to express her deepest gratitude to her supervisor Assoc. Prof.
Dr. Faruk Yalvaç for his guidance, advice, criticism, encouragement and insight
throughout the research.

The author would like to thank her TOBB colleagues for their continued support
during the completion of this thesis. The author would especially like to thank
TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu whose leadership enabled and inspired her
to create this work. The author is also grateful to TOBB Secretary General Mustafa
Saraçöz and former TOBB Secretary General İsmail Köksal for their faith in her and
their continued support. She would also like to thank TEPAV Director Güven Sak,
who was so kind to accept her interview request. Çağrı Gürgür, İskender Elverdi,
Sancar Sefer Süer, and Naci Akın are TOBB colleagues who have been very patient
in answering her technical questions. The author is grateful to them.

The author would also like to thank Prof. Dr. Atila Eralp, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Fatih
Tayfur Assoc. Prof. Dr. Galip Yalman, and Assist. Prof. Dr. Sait Akşit for their
continued support and understanding which was never wavered in spite of the fact
that the work continued for a prolonged time span.

The author wishes to thank Sheila Sudhakaran, Assistant Secretary General of
FICCI, who has very kindly provided information on FICCI, helped with navigation
of the FICCI web site which contains extensive information on the institution, and
who has kindly read, reviewed and provided feedback on the section comparing
TOBB with FICCI.

The technical assistance of Dursun Yılmaz is also gratefully acknowledged.

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Last but not least, the author would like to express her gratitude to her husband
Levent Özkaban for his patience, understanding, friendship and lifelong support.
Without him, this work simply would not have been possible.

The author also wishes to state that this thesis being an academic work, the views
reflected here are her own, and they do not necessarily reflect official views of
TOBB as an institution.
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