Blockchain contractualism as modus vivendi: a praxis for reconfiguring post-colonial state-building

Kaleb Demerew

Chapter 5 in Governing Differences, 2025, pp 111-134 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter develops blockchain contractualism as a praxis-oriented framework for addressing foundational state-building gaps in the post-colonial world and implementing a modus vivendi. The first section examines the two most enduring challenges in post-colonial state-building, the transactional challenge of establishing sovereignty and the ideational challenge of establishing relational governance based on reason and persuasion. The second section reviews the limitations of social contract models from classical liberalism in addressing these foundational transactional and ideational gaps in post-colonial contexts, making the case for a modus vivendi configuration of contractarian theory. The third section develops the framework of blockchain contractualism as a ‘second best’ alternative for post-colonial state-building; this refers to a system in which individuals conduct political and economic transactions under full autonomous agency, creating emergent relational identities. The fourth and final section examines how this framework can be understood as a policy-relevant praxis for implementing minimally liberal systems in post-colonial contexts, aided by emerging technologies. The practical limitations of blockchain contractualism in ultimately addressing the critical post-colonial state-building gaps are also explored.

Keywords: Blockchain theory; Techno-politic integration; Liberal realism; Development technology; Institutions; Conflict (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
ISBN: 9781035348572
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