Challenging the ideal? : traditional governance and the modern state in Somaliland

Increasing attention paid to state-building and reconstruction of post-conflict states has highlighted significant deficiencies in the practice of state-building, largely brought on by a lack of knowledge and expertise, but also because of a narrow and intrusive view of what a state can and should be. By examining assumptions underlying much of the literature on weak, fragile and failed states, the myth of the 'ideal' state is highlighted; through this it is possible to understand, and also critique. the expectations for state formation or state-building and what a state 'should be.' An idea case study for this, and thus the focus of this thesis, is Somaliland, an unrecognised state in the Horn of Africa. For all pretences, Somaliland is a separate entity from its southern neighbour, and is often referred to as the 'model' of state formation in Africa.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo