This is a short video interview with Emmanuel, recorded in 1981. The videocassette is labeled T22686 in handwriting and references Emmanuel’s CV entry: 14/VI. In the CV, it is titled: Cassette Interview IRM.
The interview was conducted in conjunction with the publication of Technologie Appropriée ou Technologie Sous-Développée, published by P.U.F., Paris, in 1981. Emmanuel expressed surprise at the attention this publication received from mainstream media at the time. (We also have three other audio recordings of longer radio interviews on this book, which we plan to release later.) The book was subsequently translated into English in 1982, and into German, Italian, and Portuguese in 1984.
In the book, Emmanuel explores the transfer of technology and development in the Third World. His support for multinational corporations as a potential vehicle for development sparked considerable controversy, particularly among left-wing audiences. Emmanuel did not endorse the ruthless exploitation practiced by transnational capital, yet he recognized the progressive role that advanced capitalism could play in developing productive forces in the global South. As he put it, “Capitalism is bad – underdeveloped capitalism is worse.”
For the global South to advance socialism, it had to overcome the polarizing tendencies inherent in the capitalist world system. This required breaking free from the constraints of the capitalist world market, which condemned many nations to poverty. The process of building socialism presupposed the development of productive forces and a transitional state capable of defending and promoting a society that served the working class. Emmanuel argued that this evolution of productive forces had to occur within a world system still dominated by capitalist production.
