Logistics is key to a country’s trading opportunities. Poor trade logistics performance, measured in the cost and complexity of importing and exporting, precludes many countries from diversifying their economies and can hamper trade, growth and employment. This is acutely relevant for developing countries, where a frail logistics environment, i.e., the combination of logistics infrastructure and services, is often a factor in weak trade. While trade consists of imports and exports, exports are crucial to a country’s development due to their potential to increase income and employment. Supply chain delays increase transportation costs and hence product costs, thus decreasing the competitiveness of exports. They force companies to hold higher inventory to avoid production stoppages due to delays in procuring preliminary products. While logistics services are mostly provided by private actors, governments play a key role in ensuring a well-functioning logistics environment, for example, through providing public infrastructure, customs procedures, or vocational training. Given limited resources, identifying and prioritizing investments are crucial tasks for developing nations. This dissertation develops a decision framework for the public sector as to which logistics interventions to carry out in a country wishing to facilitate higher-value exports. Higher-value exports here refer not just to a higher amount of exports, but to a higher value added of exports. The framework is applied to three product categories: automotive products, perishable agricultural products, and high-tech manufacturing. It is then applied to Vietnam, Morocco, and Kyrgyzstan, three middle-income countries representing different geographies, population sizes, and industrial structures. Methods to develop the framework include structured and semi-structured interviews, data analyses from public sources, and a review of the literature. The results include product-category-specific logistics requirements, gap analyses for the three countries, and policy recommendations for measures to improve logistics for high-tech manufacturing in Vietnam, automotive products in Morocco, and perishable agricultural goods in Kyrgyzstan. Although the suggested logistics measures are applicable to the three case study countries, the framework’s first part (target set-up of the logistics environment and logistics requirements) can be applied to other countries wishing to facilitate exports in the three product categories. Guidelines on potential measures to improve the logistics environment for the three product categories are included and can be used by policymakers in other countries. The framework developed here can also be applied to other product categories. It uses a structured approach that enables identifying recommended policy measures even with a narrow empirical base of public country-level, logistics-related data and insights from interviews with logistics stakeholders. Logistik ist der Schlüssel zu den Handelschancen eines Landes. Eine niedrige außenhandelsbezogene Logistikleistung, gemessen in Kosten und Hindernissen von Importen und Exporten, hindert viele Länder daran, ihre Volkswirtschaften zu diversifizieren, und kann Außenhandel, Wachstum und Beschäftigung hemmen. Dies gilt insbesondere für Entwicklungsländer, in denen ein schwieriges Logistikumfeld, d. h. das Zusammenspiel von Logistikinfrastruktur und Logistikdienstleistungen, oft ein Faktor für schwachen Außenhandel ist. Während Außenhandel sowohl aus Exporten als auch aus Importen besteht, sind Exporte aufgrund ihres Potenzials zur Steigerung von Wohlstand und Beschäftigung von entscheidender Bedeutung für die Entwicklung eines Landes. Verzögerungen in der Lieferkette erhöhen die Transport- und damit die Produktkosten und beeinträchtigen die Wettbewerbsfähigkeit von Exporten. Sie zwingen Unternehmen, höhere Lagerbestände zu halten, um Produktionsausfällen aufgrund von Verzögerungen bei der Beschaffung von Vorprodukten vorzubeugen. Obwohl Logistikdienstleistungen hauptsächlich von privaten Akteuren erbracht werden, spielen nationale Regierungen eine Schlüsselrolle bei der Gewährleistung eines gut funktionierenden Logistikumfeldes, z. B. über öffentliche Infrastruktur, Zollabfertigung oder Berufsausbildung. Angesichts begrenzter Ressourcen sind das Ermitteln und Priorisieren notwendiger Investitionen entscheidende Aufgaben für Entwicklungsländer. Diese Dissertation entwickelt ein Entscheidungsmodell für den öffentlichen Sektor, welche handelslogistischen Interventionen in einem Land durchgeführt werden sollten, um Exporte innerhalb höherwertiger Produktkategorien zu ermöglichen. Höherwertige Exporte beziehen sich hier nicht nur auf eine höhere Exportmenge, sondern auch auf eine höhere Wertschöpfung der Exporte. Das Entscheidungsmodell wird auf drei Produktkategorien angewendet: Automobilprodukte, leichtverderbliche Agrarprodukte und Hightech-Produkte. Sodann wird das Modell auf Marokko, Kirgisien und Vietnam angewendet, drei Länder mit mittelhohem Einkommen, die unterschiedliche Weltregionen, Bevölkerungsgrößen und Industriestrukturen repräsentieren. Die zur Erstellung des Entscheidungsmodells verwendeten Methoden umfassen strukturierte und semistrukturierte Interviews, Datenanalysen aus öffentlich zugänglichen Quellen und Literaturanalysen. Die Ergebnisse beinhalten produktkategorie-spezifische Logistikanforderungen, Lückenanalysen für die drei Länder sowie Handlungsempfehlungen für Regierungsmaßnahmen zur Verbesserung der Logistik für Automobilprodukte in Marokko, leichtverderbliche landwirtschaftliche Güter in Kirgisien und Hightech-Fertigung in Vietnam. Obgleich die vorgeschlagenen Logistik-Maßnahmen nur für die drei Fallstudienländer gelten, kann der erste Teil des Entscheidungsmodells (die Idealkonfiguration des Logistikumfeldes sowie produktkategoriespezifische Logistikanforderungen) auf andere Länder angewendet werden, die Exporte in den drei Produktkategorien fördern möchten. Ebenfalls enthalten sind Leitfäden für die Regierungen anderer Länder bezüglich möglicher Maßnahmen zur Verbesserung des Logistikumfelds der drei Produktkategorien. Das hier entwickelte Entscheidungsmodell kann auch auf andere Produktkategorien angewendet werden. Es bedient sich einer strukturierten Herangehensweise, die es ermöglicht, empfohlene staatliche Maßnahmen auch auf einer schmalen empirischen Basis aus logistikbezogenen Daten und Erkenntnissen aus Interviews mit Logistikakteuren herauszuarbeiten.

Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are increasingly viewed as valuable contributors to the global economy, which translates into their importance in business literature and academic research. Recent studies suggest that there exists a substantial variety of international activities pursued by SMEs expanding abroad, with a prominent presence of early internationalised enterprises, including born global. Despite the acknowledgement of the importance of human capital for SME internationalisation, there is a persistent knowledge gap concerning HR practices in this context. Until now, researchers investigating the accelerated internationalisation of SMEs have focused either on the human capital of decision-makers or selected attributes of employees, although these have only been at the pre-entry or entry stages. Thus, activities performed after entering foreign markets remain. This book attempts to reduce this gap and contribute to the body of knowledge concerning HR practices in early internationalised SMEs with an emphasis on the post-entry phase. By taking such an approach, this volume integrates two streams of research: HRM in the SMEs and international business. It provides managers of SMEs with useful information on dealing with internationalisation-related challenges by means of various practices including work structuring, recruitment and selection, training and development, employee appraisal and remuneration, and performance management. The discussion of these issues is based upon data from a survey conducted in 200 SMEs and case studies exemplifying HR practices in early internationalised small and medium enterprises. It offers academic researchers, postgraduate students, and reflective practitioners a state-of-the-art overview of managing human resources in small and medium enterprises expanding internationally, including both accelerated and incremental paths.

The COVID-19 pandemic has shocked economies around the world and created an era of global instability. As the pandemic comes to a close, it is essential to examine global economies in order to achieve and maintain global stability. By maintaining global stability, the world may be prepared for future economic shocks. The Research Anthology on Macroeconomics and the Achievement of Global Stability discusses the emerging opportunities, challenges, and strategies within the field of macroeconomics. It features advancements in the field that encourage global economic stability. Covering topics such as Islamic banking, international trade, and Econophysics, this major reference work is an ideal resource for economists, government leaders and officials, business leaders and executives, finance professionals, students and educators of higher education, librarians, researchers, and academicians.

Robust SME sectors are critical to the prosperity of the six Western Balkan economies and Turkey, accounting for over 70% of those employed in the business sector and generating 65% of value added in these seven economies. Yet their potential remains untapped, as SMEs across the region grapple ...

India is emerging as a key player in the development cooperation arena, not only because of the increasing volume and reach of its south-south cooperation but more so because of its leadership and advocacy for the development of a distinctly southern development discourse and knowledge generation. This book traces and analyses the evolution of Indian development cooperation. It highlights its significance both to global development and as an effective tool of Indian foreign policy. Focussing on how India has played an important role in supporting development efforts of partner countries in South Asia and beyond through its various initiatives in the realm of development cooperation, the book tracks the evolution, genesis, and the challenges India faces in the current international context. The contributions provide a rich mix of academic and government, policy and practice, Indian and external perspectives. Theory is complemented with empirical research, and case studies on countries and sectors as well as comparisons with other aid providing countries are presented. The book is of interest to researchers and policy makers in the field of development cooperation, the role of emerging powers from the South, international development, foreign policy and global political economy.

Meat, Milk & More: Policy Innovations to Shepherd Inclusive and Sustainable Livestock Systems in Africa highlights options for sustainably promoting growth in the livestock sector, drawing from what four African countries—Ethiopia, Mali, South Africa, and Uganda—have done successfully in terms of institutional and policy innovation as well as programmatic interventions. By adapting these lessons to countries’ specific contexts and scaling them up across the continent, African governments can meet their national and international commitments to agricultural growth and transformation.