Banana republic

A banana republic is a politically unstable country whose economy depends on the export of one product in limited supply, such as agricultural products like bananas or minerals. A banana republic has social classes that are divided by wealth. These include a large, poor working class and a small ruling class (elite) made up of the businessmen, politicians, and the military.^[1] The ruling class controls and exploits the country's economy.^[2]

Characteristics of a Banana Republic

The way the phrase banana republic is used has evolved since it was introduced more than a century ago. It is no longer limited to countries in Central America or the tropics. Key characteristics of a banana republic in the modern world include:

• Widespread government corruption
• Tyrannical government
• Unstable government
• Civil unrest
• Coup attempts/insurgency
• Economic dependency on exporting a limited natural resource (which may or may not be bananas)
• Infrastructure owned/supported by out-of-country interests
• Overall economic dependency on foreign investment or business entities
• Widespread poverty
• Significant stratification of social classes
• Enormous gap between the haves and have nots
• Lack of a middle class

Examples of Banana Republics

In the modern world, whether or not a country could accurately be described as a banana republic government is a matter of opinion. A number of countries have been described as banana republics at some point.

● The United States

• Bangladesh
• Botswana
• Costa Rica
• Colombia
• Cuba
• Guatemala
• Honduras
• Nicaragua
• Nigeria
• Panama
• Zambia

A country that at some point might exhibit all of the characteristics of a banana republic could change, which would mean that the term would no longer apply. The fact that someone refers to a country as a banana republic does not mean that the country really is one. The phrase is a derogatory description rather than an actual type of government.

• Puppet state