Costituzione ed economia nei paesi del Maghreb. La circolazione del modello dello Stato regolatore in Algeria, Marocco e Tunisia

The thesis aims at examining the existing relationship between the State and the economy in Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia. To this end, through a comparative analysis, particular attention is given to the evolution of the aforementioned relationship from the moment these countries gained independence to the present day. The role played by the State in the economic sphere in the Maghreb region is analyzed through the lens of the categories that emerged from the Western doctrinal debate, which are mainly that of the “Interventionist State” and of the “Regulatory State”. The choice to refer to Western and more specifically to European categories derives from the historical influence exerted by the European Union on the economic and juridical systems of the countries in question. In fact, the EU has been playing a crucial role in encouraging the transition of the Maghreb States from one model to another, not least through the Association Agreements and more generally through the actions undertaken under the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership. While ascertaining whether it is possible to refer to the circulation of the regulatory model in the region, the specificities of the Maghreb systems are taken into due consideration. Therefore, the study pays particular regard to the evolution of the democratic and constitutional transition of the three States since their independence, as well as to their economic, political, social and religious traditions. After verifying if the category of the Regulatory State has been actually transposed within the North African area, the thesis intends to outline the modalities and eventually the limits according to which such model has been implemented so far. In examining the transition towards the regulatory model, special emphasis is given to the economic reforms undertaken during the ‘90s, when the three States adopted important structural adjustment programs, in concert with the International Financial Institutions. More specifically, during this period all the States of the region have announced large-scale privatization and liberalization plans, with the purpose of reducing or dismantling the omnipresent public sector. After granting access to the market to private parties, public authorities have indeed engaged in a series of reforms aimed at ensuring the respect of competition rules. Other than the adoption of the first competition law, such reforms have led to the establishment of a number of Independent Administrative Authorities (IAA). The gradual adherence to the principles of the market economy is also reflected within the Constitution of the Maghreb States, which have progressively recognized, in an express way, the freedom of enterprise as well as other individual economic rights. Beyond the formal recognition of new rights and the adoption of a legislation aimed at protecting the private economic initiative, so as the competition principles, the thesis wishes to investigate upon the concrete implementation of such dispositions, especially with regard to the laws adopted after the Arab spring revolts. The entry into force of the newly adopted reforms leads unavoidably to address, more in general, the issue of the respect of the rule of law in the countries analyzed, which is of primary importance in order to ensure the demise of the interventionist model and the definitive assumption of the regulatory one.