This study considers major challenges surrounding the governance of petroleum resources, and the implications for the economic growth and development of hydrocarbon-abundant countries as a result of ineffective economic, political, and social mechanisms. This study investigates the causal factors that may promote or hinder the effective management of oil and gas resources in the Kurdistan Region as a new oil and gas producing region. The large and growing body of resource curse literature has used either quantitative or qualitative cross-country approaches to investigate the determinant factors contributing to poor economic performance in natural resource-rich countries, especially petroleum-driven economies. Few research studies have used mixed methods to study the resource curse in order to gain a deeper understanding of the challenges facing petroleum-exporting countries that have been unable to convert their petroleum wealth into long-term sustainable development. This research uses different methods to explore the economic, political, and social channels behind the resource curse theory. The study consists of three sequential phases: a quantitative cross-country (econometric) analysis, a qualitative cross-country (comparative) policy analysis, and a qualitative case study (semi-structured interviews). The findings reveal that well-designed governance of the oil and gas sector is a key determinant of the oil and gas producing countries’ success in the management of petroleum resources. The results and research methods contribute to the debate in the literature on the resource curse regarding major explanations for the poor economic performance of natural resource-rich countries by adopting a methodological triangulation approach. The results also contribute to the political economy literature by showing that a well-designed institutional structure for the oil and gas sectors can contribute to greater accountability, transparency, and capacity building in the major petroleum-exporting countries. A petroleum governance model for the Kurdistan Region is proposed, which may be useful for other regions and states with similar circumstances or characteristics.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:704102 |
| Date | January 2016 |
| Creators | Auzer, Khazal Abdullah |
| Publisher | University of Warwick |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/85986/ |
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