This book examines the causes of the economic and political crisis in Argentina in 2001 and the process of strong economic recovery. It poses the question of how a country which defaulted on its external loans and was widely criticized by international observers could have succeeded in its growth and development despite this decision in 2002. It examines this process in terms of the impact of neo-liberal policies on the economy and the role of development strategy and the state in recovering from the crisis

Michael Cohen is Director of the International Affairs Program at the New School University, New York, USA.

Prologue 1. The Emergence of Neo-liberalism in Latin America: Situating the Argentine Experience 2. State Performance and Institutional Capacity in Development 3. The Argentine Crisis: What Happened? 4. Stabilization in 2002: Stopping the Free Fall into Poverty 5. Electing a New Government and Facing the External World 6. Strengthening the State to Manage at Home 7. A New Government to Address the Geographies of Inequality 8. The Politics of Redistribution: The Conflict with El Campo 9. Urban Inequality 10. From Crisis Management to Sustainable Development: Extending the Time Horizon 11. Argentina's Experience and the Search for Alternatives