Mussolinis econ policies

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Was Mussolini’s Economic Policies a Complete Failure?

Fascist Economic failure can be seen from Mussolini's entry to power in 1922 as the economy was in a dire state and to rectify the situation would have been problematic. Italy had very few raw materials; also it was divided culturally, between the modernising North and the backward South. Mussolini aimed to create autarky in Italy, in order to become self-sufficient to provide the economic base for his great militaristic ideas. The failures in Mussolini's economy can be seen from this stage as in order to establish autarky he would have need land, a large population and support of the elites, hence all culminating in his economic battles; for the lira, for grain and of the marshes, which all have their failures. On the one hand, the largest economic failure is the corporative state due to the fact it failed to meet the needs of the people also seen by the 1927 Charter of Labour; however, its successes can be seen in the long run, in modern day corporatism. Although Fascist Italy is shrouded in failure, there are some successes in his economic policy and these include the role of De Stefani, who reduced unemployment by 75% to 122,000 and created Italy’s first ever budget surplus since 1918. Yet, the biggest economic success by far is Mussolini's ability to help after the 1929 Wall Street Crash, through the IRI (The Institute for Industrial Reconstruction) to help Italy’s industries by buying shares previously held by banks. Despites these successes historian Robson suggest; the fascist were lucky enough to come to office just when the economy was on the turn- and they could claim all the credit.  

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The ‘Battle for Land’ was one of the most iconic battles by Mussolini which paved the way for the ‘Battle for Grain’. The ‘Battle for Land’ was aimed to show a new government and to impress foreign countries; it was also used in order to make land available for grain and cereal production, to provide jobs, and to improve health care by reducing malaria. Although, this battle sounded a success, this was all just part of a propaganda scheme, just like many of the other battles. In effect, between 1928 and 1938 only 80000 hectares of land were reclaimed, one-twentieth ...

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