Synopses & Reviews
This new and updated edition of Big Business, Poor Peoples exposes how many of the natural resources of developing countries are being ceded to transnational corporations answerable to no one but their shareholders. The author argues that transnational corporations have used their money, size and power to influence international negotiations and that they have taken full advantage of the move towards privatization to influence the policies of governments. Sovereignty, he concludes, is passing into corporate hands and the poor are paying the price. But people are fighting back. Citizens, workers, communities, are exposing the corporations and looking for alternatives.
Review
"A searing indictment of contemporary corporate plunder, this book constructs an airtight case for international regulation of TNCs"--Walden Bello
"Authoritative and highly readable. Madeley names the names and tells the stories to provide a clear answer to those who cling to the myth that foreign investment, transnational corporations, the IMF, the World Bank and UNDP are an answer to the prayers of the poor. An excellent book that should be read by everyone committed to ending global poverty."--David C. Korten
"Readable and persuasive … A timely and cogent examination of transnational corporations, the engines that drive globalization."--New Internationalist
Synopsis
Transnational corporations are one of the most important actors in the global economy, occupying a more powerful position than ever before. In their persistent battle to increase profits, they have increasingly turned to the developing world, a world that holds many attractions for them. But what is their impact on the poor?
Now in its second edition, Big Business, Poor Peoples finds that these corporations are damaging the lives of millions of poor people in developing countries. Looking at every sector where transnational corporations are involved, this vital book is packed with detail on how the poor are affected. The book exposes how developing countries' natural resources are being ceded to TNCs and how governments are unwilling or unable to control them. The author argues that TNCs, answerable to no one but their shareholders, have used their money, size and power to influence international negotiations and taken full advantage of the move towards privatization to influence government policies; sovereignty is passing into corporate hands, and the poor are paying the price. But people are fighting back: citizens, workers, and communities are exposing the corporations and looking for alternatives.
The first edition of this path-breaking book put the issue of transnational corporations and the poor firmly on the agenda. This second edition contains significant new and updated material and is an essential read for anyone who wants to know more about the effects of corporate power on the poor.
About the Author
John Madeley is a best-selling author, journalist and broadcaster, specializing in economic and social development issues, notably international trade, transnational corporations, food and agriculture, aid, poverty and hunger, and human rights.
Table of Contents
Preface * Acknowledgements * Introduction: The corporate spread * Why Poor Countries 'Want' the Corporations * The Agri-corporations: From production to trade * Agri-commodities Take their Toll * Health: The poor take the corporate pill * Services. Water: The corporate tap * Services. Tourism: The great illusion * Extracting Logs and Fish * Mining the Poor * Manufactured Goods: Poverty amid the glitz * Energy: No force for the poor * The Corporate Persuaders * Tackling the Power: Corporate by-pass * Conclusion * Notes