The political economy of Turkey wealth fund :|the interplay between fiscal policy and economic governance

Abstract

The studies on the political economy of Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs) in recent years revealed many aspects of international economic relations, economic policymaking, and domestic political relations. Although the role of SWFs in international economic relations is widely recognized, one of the most complex and arguably understudied topic is the role of SWFs in the evolution of political regimes. The studies demonstrate that SWF behavior differ depending on the varieties of political regimes. Turkey Wealth Fund (TWF) is established in 2016 when the policymaking practices in Turkey were going through significant changes toward a centralized decision-making structure. Although the discussions on TWF revolved around its potential effects on fiscal discipline however, the changing nature of economic governance and political regime in terms of institutions and policymaking were overlooked. This thesis tries to answer three questions that can be fruitful for general audience and scientific research. What is the political economic rationale behind the establishment of TWF? What are the institutional changes that TWF brought into the economic governance of Turkey? What is the relationship between the ongoing political economic transformation in Turkey and the establishment of TWF? By doing so this thesis tries to go beyond the explanations of daily political agenda on TWF and challenge the existing conceptualizations on SWFs.