ABSTRACT
The relationships between foreign mining firms and less developed country (LDC) governments are complex, but not mysterious. They can be explained plausibly and satisfactorily in terms of extant and accepted simple concepts and propositions of “normal” social science. The theoretical apparatus developed by academic economists to handle such problems does not seem to address itself directly to the types of question this issue actually raises for ldc governments. For most ldc’s, some form of association with foreign firms probably remains valuable when they have minerals they wish to exploit for export. ldc governments need to greatly improve their ability to analyze and understand the operation of the mining industries they deal with. Each case deserves study in its own right; in some cases foreign firms may be essential, in others valuable but inessential, in others not useful at all.
