Costalli, S., Moretti, L., & Pischedda, C. (2014). The Economic Costs of Civil War: Synthetic

Counterfactual Evidence and the Effects of Ethnic Fractionalization. HiCN Working

Papers, 184.

This paper provides an analysis of the role of the civil war in the destruction of the economy of a particular region. This paper directly relates to the topic of big business because it is virtually impossible for any business organization to achieve growth in an environment that is not stable. Civil wars and conflicts normally have the capability of destroying the economy of a given region, and this is better reflected in Iraq, Sub-Saharan Africa and various regions of the world, which are prone to civil wars. This paper provides a detailed analysis on the impact of civil wars within an economy, and the best policies to enact for purposes of protecting a given economy from collapse.

This paper directly relates to the current issues that involve the manner which organizations are doing business. This is because of globalization, and the era of multi-national corporations, where business organizations are involved in an expansion strategy aimed at increasing the share of their markets, and their profits. However, these organizations cannot invest in a hostile climate that is full of civil war. This is because they would most definitely make losses, and infrastructures do not exist, that can help in the facilitation of business activities. Therefore, having a complete understanding of the political and business environment of a particular region is important because it helps in the development of a decision on whether to expand in a given economy or not.

The reason I choose this paper is based on the fact that the world is cur5rently experiencing a series of civil wars. This includes a civil war in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Nigeria, etc. These wars play a role in limiting the growth of these states, and in the conduction of international trade. For example, a country such as Nigeria, Iraq and Libya has various multi-national corporations which are in charge of drilling oil, and exploring oil substances. Civil conflicts and political instability would scare off international investors, leading to the collapse of the economies of these countries.

The limitation of this paper, is that it does not provide adequate information on how top prevent civil wars. I intend to get this information from books, specifically books written about democracy and politics. Political journals would also be another source of information aimed at supplementing the information contained in this article.

This is the first article I would review, specifically because it introduces us to factors that may hinder the emergence of big business organizations within an economy.