Rethinking Semi-Peripheral Growth Models: Firm-Centred Dynamism Beyond Structural Constraints

Political economy scholarship on semi-peripheral economies traditionally focuses on structural constraints, particularly dependency on foreign investment and entrenched dominant growth coalitions. In this talk, Dr Sonja Avlijaš challenges these perspectives by foregrounding firm-level agency as a driver of economic dynamism. Drawing on insights from two of her published papers and a forthcoming handbook chapter, she explores how heterogeneous economic actors—beyond multinational corporations and state-owned enterprises—navigate semi-peripheral constraints and contribute to new growth trajectories. Through a case study of exporting small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Southeastern Europe and the governance structures that facilitate firm-driven innovation, Dr Avlijaš argues that semi-peripheral growth models are more dynamic and heterogeneous than commonly assumed. She highlights how domestic firms engage in translocal knowledge exchange, leverage diasporic networks, or repurpose socialist-era industrial capabilities to mitigate dependency and generate alternative development pathways. This perspective broadens the conceptualisation of economic and political agency in semi-peripheral settings, offering new insights for comparative capitalism, development studies, and the political economy of growth.

Speaker: Sonja Avlijaš (University of Belgrade)

Discussant: Jan Rovný (CEE-Sciences Po)

Chairs: Hugo Meijer and Eugenio Sánchez (CERI-Sciences Po)