569 Antonio Juan Briones Peñalver The economics of security and defence. Transfer of knowledge and innovation related to the defence industry activities adequately.9 This modernisation process leads to the continued socio-economic development of the organisation itself in such a way as to: a) maximise defence logistics, thereby establishing certain criteria for the effectiveness of this organisation in terms of staffing; b) provide support for defence system procurement (resources, equipment and infrastructure); c) promote higher quality over quantity (fewer soldiers and more technical experts); d) boost specialisation as compared to diversity; e) promote rationalisation and restructuring, which will make increased material resources available; and f ) increase budgetary resources. These overtones to the modernisation of the armed forces give rise to reflection on what we understand by the “economics of security and defence” today. Appli-cation of the economic discipline within the defence sector is riddled with challen-ges. Along the way towards this, it becomes clear that “at the outset of modernity, the field of economics was based on the values provided by land and labour”10 The authors reiterate that “production and wealth are linked to these va-lues” and to “political economy”. Likewise, these Portuguese academics11 underline that “the economy, dematerialised by new technologies, widens the distance separating human beings and disassociates the concept that they had of human nature and other humans”; namely, the grandeur associated with political economy. On that account, if one considers political economy -or “economic science”- to be the relationships between people, values and the factors associated with the labour that generates wealth, the “economics of security and defence”, should also be deemed a discipline. It can thus be defined as “the result of partnership between the security and defence means and resources that find their origin in the state, whereby they are made available to society and serve to benefit a region’s well-being”. 9 BRIONES, A.J., 2007, op.cit. 10 COVAS, A., AND COVAS, M.DAS M. Modernizaçao Ecológica, Serviços Ecossistémicos e Riscos Globais. Ruralidades V. Universidade do Algarve, Portugal, 2010, pp. 17. 11 COVAS, A Y COVAS, M.DAS.M, 2010, op.cit
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