This book studies the organization and effects of linkages between transnational corporations - mainly Danish - and local firms in developing countries. It is based on a number of case studies of linkage collaborations and a survey of about ninety Danish firms and their relations to partners in developing countries. The analyzed host countries are Ghana, India, Malaysia, South Africa, and Vietnam. The book is a contribution to the emerging literature on firm strategy in developing countries, offering new empirical evidence of the multi-faceted and complex nature of cross-border inter-firm linkages. It documents how even small firms in both developed and developing countries engage in - and can benefit from - cross-border linkages.

This book examines the subject of Development Finance, or more specifically how financial systems can help or hinder the process of human development. As an expert in this field, Stephen Spratt reviews the components of the domestic and international financial systems, and considers reform options objectively against the central goal of human development. The result is a combination of orthodox and more innovative approaches, which provides a thorough grounding in development finance theory and practice in the 21st century. Topics covered in the book include: The Millennium Development Goals Financial crises and international capital flows The role of the private sector Microfinance. Focusing on the roles of the World Bank and the IMF and with a host of case studies and real world examples from Asia, Africa and Latin America as well as the "transition" economies of Eastern Europe, the author examines developing countries’ engagement with the international financial system and its influence on the process of human development, both positive and negative.

This volume represents some of the Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the Research Committee on Development Economics (Ausschuss für Entwicklungsländer) of the German Economic Association (Verein für Socialpolitik) held in Cologne, Germany, in July 2004. The meeting focused on the effectiveness of, and new approaches in, development cooperation. Both issues have become increasingly important in recent years in view of the declining volume of budget funds allocated to development cooperation. The papers discussing the effectiveness of foreign aid shed new light on the issue at a crucial moment where economists have begun to question the recent consensus that the productivity of aid mainly depends on the recipient country's policy environment. As far as the contributions dealing with new approaches in development cooperation are concerned, these are centred on a closer integration of the private sector, by joint action with so-called lead firms in production networks on the one hand, and the mobilization of additional financial resources from international capital markets for bilateral development cooperation, on the other. The authors also make suggestions concerning critical aspects relevant for implementation. The last part of this volume is dedicated to an assessment of low-income countries' pension schemes based on the human capital approach.

This book provides an in-depth overview of the most salient aspects of development finance. It critically reviews the current state of relevant literature on this topic and assesses both the challenges and the opportunities presented by the various forms of finance for development. Chapters from expert contributors examine a range of topics from the link between finance and growth and finance and misallocation, the relationship between financial illiteracy and lack of legal titles on access to finance, to the role of governments in the financial system and the role of overseas development assistance, remittances, microfinance, foreign direct investment (FDI) and stock exchanges on development. This book offers a good point of reference for postgraduate and PhD students and will appeal to researchers in this field.

It is nowadays well accepted that both economic growth and development are highly dependent on improving not just the availability of capital, but also access to technological capabilities, infrastructure and resources. This has gone hand-in-hand with an increasing economic liberalization of most developing countries. The role of the MNE as a viable source of both capital and technology is one of the key features of this new openness. In the process of embracing FDI as a solution to the myriad of economic ills - something even the World Bank has begun to do - little attempt is made to understand the rationale and the costs associated with this policy stance. Simply put, FDI is not a condition sine qua non for development. Too much emphasis has been placed on attracting FDI, and not on understanding how to optimise the benefits for the host economy. This volume aims to encourage and promote research related to these issues. This volume was previously published as a special issue of the European Journal of Development Research.