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Handle with care: fragile states and the determinants of fragility

The international community has grave concerns over the capacity of so-called ‘fragile states’ to effectively deliver basic services to their people due to their weak policy and institutional environments. This article examines the drivers of state fragility. The World Bank and OECD definitions of fragility are adopted using the World Bank’s Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) scores. Analysis is conducted on both binary measures of fragility and the actual CPIA scores using an array of estimation techniques. Findings indicate that democracy, income levels, economic growth, levels of education, country size and natural resource rents are important determinants of fragility. Unlike other studies, findings also suggest that being a Small Island Development State is a primary driver of fragility.