The post-Communist growth machine : The case of Baku, Azerbaijan

Abstract

For years the scholars of urban studies ignored the issue of existence of growth machines in post Communist cities. Nevertheless, this phenomenon has existed in post-Communist space, especially in the former Soviet region. Although there are local geographical peculiarities, there are also striking similarities between growth politics in post-Soviet, European and US cities. Baku is interesting case from this perspective as the city has developed in a different way than those elsewhere in the region. While market forces do not play an important role in urban development there, government-led urban elites—the growth machine—define the political economy of the city and future development.