ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the authors examine the relationship between defense spending and budgetary allocations in twelve countries in the Middle East, North Africa/Mediterranean, and South Asia. On the surface, budgetary trade-offs between allocations to defense and socio/economic programs would seem to be straight forward. The authors attempt to identify the differential budgetary effect in their sample of countries from the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia. Before a rigorous budgetary analysis can be undertaken for their sample of countries, there should be some sense as to the relative amounts of resources devoted to the military in each country. Developing countries are far from homogeneous with regard to the manner in which defense expenditures impact on their economies. The authors' analysis indicated that defense socio-economic trade-offs also vary considerably depending on whether the country has an environment characterized by a high or low level of military expenditures.
