Journal of Business & Economic Policy

Integrated Structures Approach to Economic Development
Farid Bashir Taher

Abstract
Several major theories of development were contributed by famous economists over the post-world war II era. The Five Stages of Development by Rostow in the 1950s and 1960s, the Structural Changes by Lewis, the Patterns of Development by Chenery in the 1970s.All these classical theories were constructed on the base of a common assumption that the economic development process has always been launched from a traditional agricultural economy that was transformed into an industrial economy to attain countries development objectives. This paper criticizes classical theories of development for neglecting the model of development followed by the nonagricultural economy of the Islamic State established in the middle of the Arab peninsula about 550 (A.D.). The Islamic State was able to attain the lowest poverty rate ever known in economic history, moving from a small, poor, primitive economy to one of the greatest economic, political and military empires of the world, in less than 130 years. Through the integration of the diversified structures of the member nations economies, The Islamic Empire expanded to cover all Arabian Peninsula, Egypt, and the North Africa, and later on Syria was added after defeating the Byzantine army in 636 (A.D.), by 650 the Persian Empire was added too. Few years later the Islamic Empire boarders reached India, China, Spain, and Eastern Europe.

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