Business in Fragile States

Private sector actors in fragile contexts operate simultaneously as economic, political, and peace-or-conflict agents. They are not neutral market participants but active shapers of how communities experience conflict, development, and transitions toward peace. Jason Miklian's fieldwork demonstrates that understanding business in fragile states requires examining the intersection of commercial strategy, political power, and social stability.

Miklian's 2019 analysis shows how economic development strategies often proceed in parallel with, and sometimes exacerbate, processes of ethnic cleansing. Extractive industries, land acquisition, and infrastructure projects create incentives for marginalization of minority groups. Understanding this nexus is essential for firms seeking to operate responsibly and for governments designing inclusive development policies.

Domestic and foreign firms in Myanmar diverge significantly in their perceptions of responsible business practice. Foreign firms often face pressure from international stakeholders to meet global standards, while domestic firms navigate local political relationships and immediate survival concerns. These differences shape their roles in either reinforcing or challenging conflict-enabling structures.

Many Colombian businesses developed strategies, supply chains, and political relationships that operated under conditions of active conflict. When peace arrived, these firms faced profound challenges: their conflict-era strategies became liabilities, their political connections shifted in legitimacy, and the entire market environment transformed. Miklian's research shows how firms navigated this disorienting transition.

The "Footprints of Peace" coffee initiative demonstrates how agricultural business can be designed intentionally to support conflict-affected communities and strengthen local peacebuilding. By connecting coffee production to peacebuilding outcomes, the project shows how supply chains can become vehicles for social healing rather than economic extraction.

Small business owners are often embedded in their communities in ways that large corporations are not. They shape local economic opportunity, employ neighbors, and model civic participation. Miklian and Hoelscher show how small business leadership directly influences whether citizens perceive their economy as inclusive and whether they support peace consolidation.

India's Maoist insurgency overlaps significantly with districts containing mineral wealth. Mining creates both grievances (displacement, environmental damage, weak state governance) and opportunities for insurgent financing. Miklian's "Hearts and Mines" analysis reveals how extractive industries are intertwined with patterns of armed conflict in ways that demand both environmental and peace-focused governance.

Ahmedabad's slums reveal how poverty, religious identity, and economic marginalization interact. Miklian and Birkvad document how informal businesses in poor communities operate within networks defined by caste and religion, and how these networks become vectors for either conflict or solidarity during moments of communal tension.

India's rapid urbanization and smart city initiatives promise technological solutions to urban challenges. Miklian and Hoelscher's research questions whether technology-driven development can actually build social cohesion in cities marked by deep inequalities. The findings suggest that business models centered only on technological innovation risk deepening divides if they ignore the social and political dimensions of inclusive urban development.

Business and violent conflict are not simply opposed forces. In Indonesia's post-Reformasi context, private firms may simultaneously experience violence as a threat to business continuity, benefit from violence-enabled control of territory or resources, and contribute to grievances that fuel violence. This multidimensional relationship demands nuanced analysis rather than simplistic narratives of business as peacemaker or warmonger.

Lebanese SMEs face simultaneous crises: economic collapse, currency devaluation, banking system failure, and political paralysis. Survival requires sophisticated strategies—informal currency exchange, non-traditional financing, geographic diversification, and deep social networks. Miklian, Maalouf, and Hoelscher show that business continuity in polycrisis depends less on formal institutions than on adaptive capacity and social capital.