The Changing Role of the State amid Economic Globalization Processes Essay

The Changing Role of the State amid Economic Globalization Processes - Essay Example This paper seeks to establish the extent to which the process of economic globalization has led to changes in the role of the state. Economic globalization discourse is based on what proponents see as the ability of trade liberalization, which is the removal of cross border barriers to trade, to improve the economic development of a country therefore transforming lives of the people within a jurisdiction. Although it is widely accepted that economic globalization has affected the performance of the state, supporters argue that this should not be seen as undermining the power of the state. The most important role of the state when engaging with international stakeholders is to protect national interests The participation of the state in international arena is an important exercise that will ensure citizens are not left out from the sharing of benefits accrued from the interlinking of global economies. The state tries to engender environment, that is conducive to free flow of capital outside state borders, and making it easy for labor to flow freely from domestic to international markets. Economic globalization has led to changes in the role of the state, which is now perceived as a facilitator of economic engagements in the global markets. To benefit from new opportunities presented by the global market, states have to transform their institutions to be open to free flow of factors of production and other resources. These changes have increased the role played by non-state actors such as MNCs who now control the financial flows between states.