Conference: Value Chains for broad-based development
OECD Global Conference: Tokyo Action Statement
IFC / FT Second Annual Private Sector Development Essay Competition
Donor Approaches to Supporting Pro-Poor Value Chains
Donor Committee for Enterprise Development Meeting
USAID: The Value Chain Approach and Microenterprise Development
Capacity building for business information networking
ODI: Value chains and the rural poor in disadvantaged regions
Training and Events
Research publications and Concepts
Handbooks and Guides
Periodicals
Case studies and project documentation
Websites of the Month
1. Value Chain Development as a tool against poverty
The value chain, also known as value chain analysis, is a concept from business management that was first described and popularized by Michael Porter in his 1985 best-seller, Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance. The concept has been extended beyond individual organizations. It can apply to whole supply chains and distribution networks. By exploiting the upstream and downstream information flowing along the value chain, the firms may try to bypass the intermediaries creating new business models, or in other ways create improvements in its value system.
The value chain describes the full range of activities that firms and workers do to bring a product from its conception to its end use and beyond. This includes activities such as design, production, marketing, distribution and support to the final consumer. The activities that comprise a value chain can be contained within a single firm or divided among different firms. Value chain activities can produce goods or services, and can be contained within a single geographical location or spread over wider areas.
The competitiveness of firms not only depends on the functioning of suppliers and buyers within a cluster, but also and often most importantly, on the entire chain at the national and global level. The value chain approach helps to identify all the enterprises that contribute to the production of a good or service within and beyond a cluster and shows which actions are needed to support these enterprises.
Businesses in developing countries have to take globalisation into account. Nowadays, markets in rich countries are usually accessed via value chains. If a company wants to survive as a supplier, it has to be reliable, and its products must be of unvarying high quality. In terms of development policy, it makes sense to help enterprises in poor countries to reach that goal.
Global value chains are radically altering how goods and services are produced--parts made in one country, for instance, are increasingly assembled in another and sold in a third. The promotion of value chains provides an opportunity to identify bottlenecks in chains, to link up all important economic actors within a chain, to reach economies of scale and to enable local producers to meet certain standards. This contributes to the realization of higher incomes and higher employment of local producers.
Private Sector Development is increasingly acknowledged by governments, donors and development organisations as an important step towards alleviating poverty and creating viable economies. Value Chain Development is a multiple and participatory process that leads to coordinated interventions. It has the enormous advantage to bring together stakeholders from different production stages and sectors, to create a productive and innovative dialogue and to draw the attention to “Collective Competitiveness”. http://www.weitzenegger.de/new/valuechains.html
2. Conference: Value Chains for broad-based development
Results of the International conference, Berlin, 30 – 31 May 2007
The German Development Cooperation (BMZ and GTZ), the Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC and SECO) and the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA) called an international conference on ''Value Chains for Broad-based Development'' that was held in Berlin on May 30-31. Around 200 specialists and practitioners of value chain promotion participated.
Promoting value chains has become an important field of economic cooperation in recent years. Hence, the first objective of the conference was to take stock of the practical experience. Indeed, the development projects present at the conference showed an impressive record of successful initiatives. The documented know-how demonstrates that value chain promotion has been established as a solid, widely used concept.
The second objective of the conference presented a much greater challenge – finding answers to the question how value chain work can become more socially inclusive benefiting a greater number of poor and securing their position in the market.
The idea was to identify directions for the further development of the value chain approach. The arguments can be clustered into a few key statements:
- The value chain approach contributes to reducing poverty if it is employed strategically and concentrates on targeting the poverty problem. We have to overcome the bias towards the better off by consciously using the full range of options available to support the poor in value chains. This includes fostering associations, skills development and learning, facilitating contract arrangements and supporting information and service delivery. Often, it is necessary to combine value chain promotion with a livelihoods perspective, with local economic development or with vocational training so as to enable the poor to enter (and stay in) commercial markets. However, we need much better monitoring tools to guide pro-poor value chain promotion.
- Choosing the right market and determining an appropriate market development strategy are strategic tasks of great importance, both in terms of scale and in terms of avoiding a race to the bottom. Development agencies need to promote the innovation of products and of business models.
- The cooperation between development agencies and the private sector is a precondition sine qua non. Companies are needed as development partners for several tasks – reaching out to a large number of small suppliers, investing in technology and productive capacity, promoting policy change, supporting the introduction of social and ecological standards and innovating products.
- The greatest outreach could be achieved by supporting an active economic policy for the industries and value chains most relevant to the poor. Governments should be advised in using the value chain perspective to remove administrative barriers, conceive support policies and make targeted investments. Broad-based industry policies also include the introduction of social and ecological standards.
- Donors have to cooperate more intensively to improve their efficiency and impact. The services and contributions of development agencies complement and reinforce each other.
The last OECD Global Conference on ''Enhancing the Role of SMEs in Global Value Chains” held from 31 May to 1 June 2007 in Tokyo had as a main outcome the adoption of an Action Statement (http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/44/31/38774814.pdf) which analyses how globalisation of value chains affects the role of SMEs as traditional partners, suppliers or distributors for large and multinational firms and recommends policy actions to support SMEs in becoming successful partners in global value chains. The Conference found that governments, multinational enterprises, business associations and international institutions could play a significantly greater role in assisting SMEs to enter and to rise to the challenges of active participation in global value chains.
The Tokyo Action Statement confirms that Governments, the business community, and international organisations can facilitate SME gainful participation in global value chains through policies, practices and targeted support programmes. These programmes identified are: Raising awareness of the opportunities for participating in global value chains; Increasing participation in global value chains through collective action and co-operation; Promoting the capacity for innovation by local SMEs; Enhancing SMEs’ value obtained from intellectual assets and intellectual property (IP); Facilitating the adoption of product quality and process standards. The Annex has examples of specific country/economy, and company and international organisations support programmes. http://www.the-convention.co.jp/tokyo-conference/
4. IFC / FT Second Annual Private Sector Development Essay Competition
The International Finance Corporation of the World Bank Group (IFC) and the Financial Times (FT) jointly announce their second annual Essay Competition. This year's theme is ''Private Sector Development: Creating Markets, Transforming Lives.'' The invite fresh ideas from all sources on how a vibrant private sector can tangibly help to catalyze sustainable growth and reduce poverty. The deadline for submissions is 30 September 2007. http://www.ifc.org/competition
5. Donor Approaches to Supporting Pro-Poor Value Chains
The Linkages and Value Chains Working Group commissioned Tilman Altenburg to carry out a scoping study of the current work of members to develop pro-poor value chains, and to propose a framework for future analysis. This study serves several purposes, namely: to discuss the analytical foundations of the concept, help to clarify terminology and discuss areas of overlap as well as conceptual distinctions between ''value chain” and ''linkage” approaches and related concepts in the field of private sector development; to examine the implications of the increasing coordination and globalization of value chains for pro-poor growth in developing countries; to identify strategies and interventions for value chain development in ways that contribute to economic growth and poverty reduction; and to identify questions for further discussion among the donor agencies involved. See the study at http://www.sedonors.org/resources/download.asp?id=386
6. Donor Committee for Enterprise Development Meeting
The Linkages and Value Chains Working Group held a Technical Workshop in Rome, 23-25 April 2007, on '' Engaging the Private Sector ''; all of the presentations made at the event have now been posted. http://www.enterprise-development.org/events/event.asp?eventid=50
7. USAID: The Value Chain Approach and Microenterprise Development
The USAID Microenterprise Development (MD) office value chain approach is a tool to create wealth in poor communities and for promoting poverty-reducing economic growth. MD's value chain approach seeks to understand how and when MSEs can successfully compete in growing value chains, targeting sectors where the poor are concentrated—agriculture, natural products, and labor-intensive industries. The approach then works to improve the competitiveness of industries (or value chains) in which significant numbers of small firms participate while addressing the constraints that hinder MSEs’ potential contributions to and benefit from value chain growth. http://www.microlinks.org/ev_en.php?ID=9652_201&ID2=DO_TOPIC
8. Capacity building for business information networking
SMEs need tailor-made information solutions, i.e. business information services that assess, verify and apply information to a specific business problem. From there the UNIDO developed a programme that ''creates value added by bringing together information from different sources and transforming that information into solutions, including ICT and e-business support, in order to enable the integration of SMEs in national and global value chains. http://www.unido.org/doc/28890
9. ODI's Action research on ‘Value chains and the rural poor in disadvantaged regions’
ODI has been working with the Rural Poverty and Environment (RPE) initiative within The International Development Research Centre (IDRC) to develop a research agenda that supports poor, rural households to engage more successfully with global economic processes. A Scoping Study was published at the end of last year that summarises the results of this research project - more about this on the Scoping Study project page. http://www.odi.org.uk/plag/PROJECTS/07_idrc_valuechainsandruralpoor.html
10. Training and Events
Value Chain Concepts (VCC) course: Value Chain Analysis and Development http://www.mdf.nl/vcc-nl
27-31 August 2007, MDF training centre in Ede, The Netherlands
In a joint venture with MDF Ede, Hans Posthumus Consultancy (HPC) offers now the fifth version. Participants will understand the Value Chain Conceptual Framework that entails Economic Mapping, Sub Sector Analysis and Value Chain Development. The course will enhance analytical skills to identify constraints, opportunities and leverage points for developing value chains. Participants learn how to design and steer programme interventions that promote equitable growth. Info: hans@hposthumus.nl
Value Chain Program Design: Promoting Market Solutions for MSMEs http://www.idc-aachen.de/2_4.html
Aachen, Germany, 8-12 October 2007
After successful completion of the first workshop in Germany in October 2006, which hosted 20 value chain practitioners from 10 countries, Action for Enterprise (AFE) and IDC Unternehmensberatung GmbH (IDC) are again offering a five-day training workshop that presents the latest methodologies and practice for designing subsector and value chain programs. Participants will learn how to design programs that result in market solutions to MSME constraints such as market access, input supply, technology/product development, management training, policy reform, and access to finance. Examples will be used from enterprise development programs and practitioners worldwide. The training targets those who wish to improve their facilitation skills and design programs that respect the latest thinking in value chain and market development principles.
Eighth Annual Seminar on Developing Service Markets and Value Chains http://www.value-chains.org/...
Chiang Mai, Thailand, 24-28 September 2007
The 2007 Seminar Programme is now available! Click on the link, above, for more information. For the presentations made at last year's Seminar. Jim Tanburn (Jim @ Tanburn.com) is just starting to prepare the background Reader for participants - which this year will be on current work at the interface between development agencies and business; likely main topics include:
- profiling of associations of companies in agricultural value chains, like the Sustainable Food Laboratory, SAI etc.
- the work of many donors to develop value chains using matching grants, challenge funds etc.
- other recent developments, around measuring results, reform of the business environment and public-private dialogue etc.
AFE's Training Program for 2007 http://www.actionforenterprise.org.
September 10 - 14: Chiang Mai, Thailand
October 1 - 5: Nairobi, Kenya
December 3 - 7: Washington, DC
The Action for Enterprise (AFE) training program is a series of three to five-day workshops in the latest methodologies and practice for designing value-chain programs that incorporate strategies for sustainable impact. Participants learn how to design programs that result in market solutions to MSME constraints such as market access, input supply, technology/product development, management training, policy reform, and access to finance. Examples are used from enterprise development programs and practitioners worldwide. The training targets those who wish to improve their facilitation skills and design programs that respect the latest thinking in value chain and market development principles.
Value Chain Development courses in Tanzania http://www.mma-ltd.com
Matchmakers Associates ltd. of Tanzania is offering several courses in value chain development. The next course will be held in October 1st to 12th 2007 (tentative date).
Master of International and Development Economics http://www.mide.fhtw-berlin.de
Studies at FHTW Berlin - University of Applied Sciences, starts on 1 April 2008, 18 months. Closing date for applications is 30 September 2007. See
MBA Program in SME Development, Leipzig/Germany http://www.uni-leipzig.de/sept/
The International SEPT Program is a research and training program at the University of Leipzig dedicated to providing theoretical insight as well as practical experience in the promotion of small and medium-sized enterprises in developing and transition countries.
Training modules for entrepreneurs, GTZ Senegal http://www.bds-forum.net/training-modules
Theese training modules in French language are published without copyright and are free for use. The advantages of the modules in comparison with already existing entrepreneurship trainings are the following: Less standardisation and more flexibility : The modules are very flexible in use.
UNIDO/ILO Course: Clusters and Value Chains Development http://learning.itcilo.org/entdev/cluster/
While the competitiveness of clusters depends on the density and quality of local relationships on the same territory, a better knowledge on the quality of value chains connecting clusters with its regional, national or global providers and customers is crucial to upgrade and earn opportunities for local enterprises. During this two-week training course, concrete case studies are examined, best practice is analysed, action recommendations are developed and exemplary Italian SME clusters (''Industrial districts”) are visited.
InfoAgrar Training Directory http://www.infoagrar.ch/s_training.htm
The InfoAgrar Training Directory informs project staff of current courses related to rural development. It has a global focus with a particular emphasis on courses in developing countries, and covers both technical and methodological topics.
CAPSA – Capacitating through Sub-sector Analyses http://www.hposthumus.nl/Downloads/CAPSAdescription.doc
CAPSA manual for participants and trainers available on CD. Comprises 6 training modules on entrepreneurship, business development and value chain analyses.
Papers from the SDC SED Workshop 2007 http://www.deza.admin.ch/...
Documentation includes:
- A systemic approach to value chain interventions, by Marshall Bear
- Insights gained during the SDC online debate on Value Chains in Rural Development
- A pro-poor analysis of the competitiveness of the bamboo value chain in the Mekong region
- Experiences in the sheanut butter value chain in west Africa, by Lionel Giron, Intercooperation
- Experiences in developing organic cotton in west Africa and central Asia, by Tobias Meier, Helvetas
- The experiences of seco, by Hans-Peter Egler
- Experiences in the vegetable value chain in the Honduras, by Michael Velten, Swisscontact
- Experiences with fishery associations in Bangladesh, by Peter Roggekamp, Katalyst
- Experiences in the banana, coffee and cashew value chains in Tanzania, by Tim Piper, Technoserve
11. Research publications and Concepts
OECD: Business for Development: Fostering the private sector (2007) http://www.oecd.org/document/32/0,2340,en_2649_33949_38639328_1_1_1_1,00.html
How can private enterprise help economies grow and reduce poverty? This question lies at the heart of our new book on ''Business for Development''. This indispensable book analyses private-sector activities in developing and emerging economies, drawing on case studies in Africa, Asia and elsewhere. It provides fresh thinking on how public and private actors can work together to expand markets, upgrade skills in global value chains, and develop a private sector that plays a stronger role in development.
Staying Competitive in the Global Economy. Moving Up the Value Chain http://www.oecdbookshop.org/oecd/display.asp?SF1=DI&CID=&LANG=en&ST1=5L4QDG54607L
This report brings together OECD data on the globalisation of value chains, including the rise of outsourcing/offshoring. It first examines how OECD countries are affected by the globalisation of production, on both the macroeconomic and sector-specific levels. The costs and benefits of globalisation are then discussed, with an emphasis on employment and productivity. Finally, this report analyses how globalisation impacts the competitiveness of OECD countries, highlighting the need for an effective innovation strategy. The report discusses not only the moving up the value chain that takes place in OECD countries but also in China, as R&D is increasingly going to emerging countries.
Private Sector Development in Poor Countries: Seeking Better Policy Recipes http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/32/24/38641808.pdf
OECD Policy Insight No. 48 by Federico Bonaglia and Kiichiro Fukasaku
Shaping value chains for development. Global value chains in agribusiness http://www2.gtz.de/dokumente/bib/05-0280.pdf
This GTZ study by John Humphrey analyses these challenges from a global value chain perspective, examining their implications for policies at both the micro and meso levels (technical assistance, local institutional capabilities, producer organisations, etc.) and the broader, macro level of the framework of institutions and policies that regulate agricultural production and trade, including standards-setting, intellectual property rights and global competition policy, as well as trade capacity building and trade promotion initiatives.
The value chain approach in development cooperation http://www2.gtz.de/dokumente/bib/05-1037.pdf
This GTZ study by Bettina Merlin was updated with the objective of checking and updating all existing links to present only recent information. Additionally, new internet research was completed without the strong agriculture focus of the first study. The updated version also integrates institutions working in different sectors relevant to development cooperation.
Analysis of existing theories, methodologies and discussions of value chain approaches within the development cooperation sector http://www.sdc-valuechains.ch/resources/resource_en_32.pdf
Prepared for SDC by Daniel Roduner, LBL, 2004
Global value chains in the agrifood sector http://www.ruralfinance.org/...
John Humphrey, Olga Memedovic / Institute of Development Studies, UNIDO 2006
The value chain perspective has highlighted issues of codification of knowledge in value chains, supplier competence, strategies to reduce the costs of governance, power asymmetries, and concentration. These issues are decisively affected by the two major trends in agribusiness value chains, the increasing importance of standards and increasing concentration, subjects of this paper.
Productive Strategies and Empowerment of Poor Rural Families to Participate Successfully in Global Markets - scoping study http://www.odi.org.uk/plag/PROJECTS/06_idrc_scopingstudy.htm
This project seeks to provide a map for cutting edge problems and research agendas in rural economies in developing countries. By Jon Mitchell.
Integrating SMEs in Global Value Chains: Towards Partnership for Development http://www.unido.org/userfiles/PuffK/partnerships02.pdf
This report was produced in 2001 as an effort to establish a sound conceptual basis for UNIDO’s partnership programme with the business community.
The ValueLinks Manual. A Methodology for value chain promotion http://www2.gtz.de/publikationen/isissearch/publikationen/details.aspx?RecID=BIB-GTZ070900
This GTZ manual is the reference book for the ValueLinks methodology. ValueLinks is the name given to a systematic compilation of action-oriented methods for promoting economic development with a value chain perspective. It provides essential know-how on ways to enhance employment and the business income of micro and small-sized enterprises and farmers by promoting the value chains they are operating in. The ValueLinks manual is intended for use by development projects or by public agencies promoting specific agribusiness, handicraft or manufacturing sub-sectors of the economy. It has no specific sectoral focus. However, the emphasis is on those product markets that offer opportunities for the poor. The ValueLinks manual is one of several knowledge products that use the ValueLinks methodology. The ValueLinks training seminars for professional staff of public agencies and development programmes comprise an important instrument for sharing know-how, and are given by recognised ValueLinks trainers. Order the First Edition on CD-ROM from value-links@gtz.de. For further information please
refer to Andreas Springer Heinze, Andreas.Springer-Heinze@gtz.de.
Making Value Chains Work Better for the Poor
A toolbook for practitioners of Value Chain Analysis http://www.markets4poor.org/...
The toolbook is designed as a concise document aimed to provide value chain practitioners with an easy to follow set of tools for value chain analysis, focused on poverty reduction. The aim is to bridge the gap between value chain analysis and pro-poor development. Hence the tools that are presented here are similar to those presented in other handbooks, but the main special feature of the toolbook is that within each of the tools there is a clear focus on how to apply the tool in order to analyze the impact of the value chain from the point of view of the poor.
A Handbook for Value Chain Research http://www.globalvaluechains.org/docs/VchNov01.pdf http://www.ids.ac.uk/ids/global/pdfs/VchNov01.pdf
This Handbook identifies the importance of value chains in the current era of globalisation, provides an overview of conceptual issues, describes specific methodological tools, and explores the policy relevance of value chain research. Prepared for the IDRC by Raphael Kaplinsky and Mike Moris.
The Manual for Value Chain Research on Homeworkers in the Garment Industry http://www.globalvaluechains.org/docs/wiegomanualendnov01.pdf
by Dorothy McCormick and Hubert Schmitz focuses on the role of informal production in global value chains, and in particular on the role of women in these informal activities. It is designed to facilitate research by activists and discusses particular methodological tools in an accessible style.
ILO Guide for Value Chain Analysis and Upgrading http://www.bdsknowledge.org/...
The purpose of the guide is to look at how to practically carry out value chain analysis, find upgrading solutions and implement them, using an ILO approach towards upgrading. The structure of the guide is divided into two sections: The first part gives an example for the value chain approach towards upgrading, as well as explanations for basic concepts. The second part is all about putting theory into practice: it is divided into five modules that outline a kind of project approach with real outcomes at every stage.
Alliances and Joint Ventures: Patterns of Internationalization for Developing Country Enterprises. http://www.unido.org/file-storage/download/?file%5fid=53677
This UNIDO training package is addressed to entrepreneurs and policymakers of developing countries. Part One of the training package presents the international development scenario, the competitive environment and the drivers for global expansion of enterprises. It highlights the patterns of multinational expansion, the various types of inter-firm collaboration agreement, the global manufacturing strategies of multinational enterprises and the related challenges and opportunities for developing countries. In this context, Part One presents the role of global value chains and global production networks as elements of global operations management by multinational enterprises and as vehicles for technological development of firms of developing countries. Attention is also given to the role of the governments of developing countries in creating suitable locational conditions for multinational enterprises and in providing critical support to domestic enterprises in their path for technological capability building and internationalization. Part Two will follow shortly.
Local and Regional Economic Development http://www2.gtz.de/dokumente/bib/07-0604.pdf
This handbook for LRED practitioners is based on GTZ's recent experience in supporting Local and Regional Economic Development (LRED) in South Africa. It enriches and enhances GTZ's general conceptual approach to LRED with practical experiences, further concepts and additional tools based on the LRED experience of a variety of programmes.
The Markets and Development Bulletin (MDB) http://www.markets4poor.org/...
A bimonthly newsletter on topical market-related issues produced jointly with the Mekong Private Sector Development Facility (MPDF) and the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM).
Small Enterprise Development - June 2006 edition http://www.ingentaconnect.com/...
ITDG Publishing, Volume 17, Number 2, June 2006 / 7/4/2006
Is small still relevant? Author: Vandenberg, Paul
Mapping the market: participatory market-chain development in practice. Authors: Albu, Mike; Griffith, Alison
Value chain programmes to integrate competitiveness, economic growth and poverty reduction. Authors: Kula, Olaf; Downing, Jeanne; Field, Michael
Shea kernels from Mali: a value chain case study. Authors: Lusby, Frank; Derks, Eric
From behind the veil: industry-level methodologies for disadvantaged communities in Pakistan. Authors: Jones, Linda; Snelgrove, Alexandra
14. Case studies and project documentation
Exploring the Links Between International Business and Poverty Reduction: A Case Study of Unilever in Indonesia http://www.oxfam.org.uk/what_we_do/issues/livelihoods/unilever.htm
Participation in value chains such as UI’s does not automatically guarantee improvements in the lives of people living in poverty.
Business Linkages: Lessons, Opportunities and Challenges, 2007 http://www.value-chains.org/...
This report draws on a number of brief case studies to propose a typology of corporate action to promote business linkages:
- value chain SME development and linkage programmes
- ''beyond the value chain'' SME development and linkage programmes
- strengthening the enabling environment for business linkages
- hybrid approaches
IFC, International Business Leaders Forum, John F Kennedy School, Harvard University, May 2007
Strengthening value chains in Sri Lanka's agribusiness: A way to reconcile competitiveness with socially inclusive growth? http://www.die-gdi.de/...
Stamm, Andreas et.al. (2006), DIE Studies No. 15, German Development Institute / Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik (DIE), Bonn
Enhancing the Value of Rural-Urban Links http://www.ifpri.org/divs/fcnd/dp/fcndp195.htm
This paper examines how market institutions can affect links between urban and rural areas with specific emphasis on goods market integration in the national context.
Value Chains and BDS Development: Linking Communities to Mainstream Markets in Mindanao http://www.value-chains.org/...
The final report summarizes the entire project, describing interventions and progress in the following fruit and vegetable value chains: kaong, mango, strawberry, nipa palm and an overall quality seal for public markets.
The Global Wood Furniture Value Chain:
What prospects for upgrading by developing countries? http://www.unido.org/file-storage/download?file_id=11904
The paper asks what producers need to do in order to upgrade their activities, particularly in developing countries. This experience is then used to generate a series of generic policy challenges, which might be transferred to other countries and to other sectors.
The Global Automotive Industry Value Chain:
What prospects for upgrading by developing countries? http://www.unido.org/file-storage/download?file_id=11902
The UNIDO paper shows that developing countries can increase the possibility of integration into the global value chains of transnational automotive companies by opening up their domestic markets. It concludes with emphasizing the importance of fostering networks of small firms in developing countries as a means of entering new markets.
More than T-shirts: the Integration of Developing Country Producers in Global Value Chains http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/32/59/38647249.pdf
The international fragmentation of production activities into global value chains has resulted in a phenomenal build-up of manufacturing capabilities as well as export growth in many developing countries, not only in traditional labour-intensive manufacturing, but also in more high-tech industries and in services. By Federico Bonaglia and Andrea Goldstein, based on Business for Development 2007.
The Global Apparel Value Chain: what prospects for upgrading by developing countries http://www.unido.org/file-storage/download?file_id=11900
This UNIDO paper distinguishes between three new models of competition in the North American market namely the East Asian, Mexican and Caribbean Basin model. Each model presents different perspectives and challenges for industrial innovation and learning
Poverty Orientation of Value Chains for Domestic and Export Markets in Ghana http://www.berlinerseminar.de/...
The SLE study findings suggest that pro-poor potentials of production and processing for domestic markets are under-utilised in Ghana. Price levels on export markets do not justify a sole focus on export promotion, especially if the cost and possibility of market entry of the poor are taken into account.
Value chains for a better integration of smallholders to trade - the case of chilli in Ghana http://www2.gtz.de/dokumente/bib/06-1267.pdf
The objective of this study by Christin Schipmann is to compare international and national value chains with regard to potential benefits for smallholders and existing entry barriers to their integration. The research was carried out in the chilli sector of Ghana.
BOAM’s Experience with Value Chain Promotion http://www.bds-ethiopia.net
Business Organisations and their Access to Markets (BOAM) is a private sector development programme of The Netherlands Development Organisation (SNV) in Ethiopia. The BOAM Programme will shortly wind up its pilot phase and get into expansion phase counting on its achievements and the lessons taken form the former. The pilot phase of the programme has been promoting four value chains namely: Oilseeds & Edible Oil, Honey & other Bee Products, Milk & Dairy Products and Perennial Crops with specific focus on Pineapple
Competing and Learning in Global Value Chains:
Firms’ experiences in the case of Uganda http://www.mtti.go.ug/...
A study of five sub-sectors with reference to trade between
Uganda and Europe. By Jörg Wiegratz, Paschal Nyabuntu and Charles Omagor.
Inter-agency website for the exchange of information on value chains, linkages and service markets http://www.value-chains.org
The site is dedicated to the results being achieved through systemic approaches, particularly in Private Sector Development. You will find here information from over 100 agencies, working in over 70 countries; we welcome additional contributions. The structure of this site is built around the following Phases in the 'Life Cycle' of a typical Market Development Programme or Project. Substantive documents on how value chains are being developed in sustainable ways are always welcome, for posting on that site.
Donor Committee for Enterprise Development
Working Group Linkages and value chains http://www.sedonors.org/groups/group.asp?groupid=4
This Working Group is co-chaired by Doyle Baker of FAO and Michele Clara of UNIDO. The Site links to relevant documents and events.
Community of Practice on Value Chains in Rural Development http://www.sdc-valuechains.ch/
This SDC effort brings conceptualists and practitioners together, who are interested in both sharing and learning from experiences and ideas. Together we can find new insights and ways of working with value chains in rural development.
SDC Focal Point for Rural Development http://www.sdc-ruraldevelopment.ch/index.php?userhash=872024&lID=2&navID=47
The SDC Focal Point for Rural Development is an answer to the challenge of effectively managing knowledge, learning and joint work around rural development across sectors and thematic specialisations, and across globally dispersed programmes and partners.
SDC Focal Point for Rural Development - Book Shop http://www.sdc-valuechains.ch/index.php?navID=48&userhash=1028595&lID=2
In this bookshop you find selected resources on current topics around the theme of rural development. The collection contains white and grey documents as well as CDs, videos and other media. The bookshop does not want to be a library with a comprehensive collection of documents but to offer a selection of highlights from different sources and provide access to key SDC documents with relevance for rural development.
FAO Farm Management and Production Economics Service http://www.fao.org/ag/ags/AGSP/activities.html
As one of four principal services of the Agricultural Support Systems Division, AGSP's mission is to improve planning and decision-making by farmers and people and organisations that provide support to farmers. AGSP is concerned with improvements in the profitablility, productivity and efficiency and competitiveness of farms and other agricultural business enterprises, and the promotion of sound decision making related to farm, enterprise and resource management and farming systems development.
Hans Posthumus Consultancy (HPC) http://www.hposthumus.nl
Pioneers in developing and reviewing value chain development programmes. Training and coaching value chain practitioners, in Europe and abroad, is an important aspect of the works. HPC is looking for opportunities to pioneer monitoring and evaluation systems that define and measure impact at the various levels and among various types of stakeholders. Info: hans@hposthumus.nl
mesopartner http://www.mesopartner.com/englisch/e-value-chain.html
mesopartner is a company that specialises in developing and disseminating methodologies around the issue of territorial development. mesopartner's approach to value chain development is informed by experience in both developed and developing countries. Contrary to other approaches, they suggest that the most effective and efficient way of launching a value chain initiative is by blending stakeholder mobilisation, research, and action planning into each other, rather than spending significant amounts of money on upfront research. mesopartner offers robust tools to get value chain initiatives running quickly.
Making Markets Work Better for the Poor http://www.markets4poor.org
M4P aims to increase the private sector contribution to achieving better development outcomes. M4P is a three year regional technical assistance project co-financed by the ADB, DFID (UK) and the Tokyo-based ADB Institute. The project covers three countries: Vietnam Laos and Cambodia.
The Global Value Chains Initiative http://www.globalvaluechains.org/
The Initiative seeks to develop an industry-centric view of economic globalization that highlights the linkages between economic actors and across geographic space. It is a multi-year effort to test and develop the GVC framework with the aims of creating greater analytical precision, intellectual impact and policy relevance. Our efforts include a research agenda, a publishing thrust, the development and dissemination of industrial upgrading handbooks for practitioners, and a series of intensive workshops convened to test and broaden the framework through interactions among network participants and with the broader academic, policy-making and activist communities.
CVCR: Center for Value Chain Research, Lehigh University http://www.lehigh.edu/~inchain/
The Center for Value Chain Research (CVCR) is committed to promoting and conducting research and information exchange through the integration of emerging theory and best practices. The Center's research focuses primarily on value chain planning and development activities, which connect corporate strategy with value chain execution systems.
Value Chain Partnerships for a Sustainable Agriculture http://www.valuechains.org/
The goal of this Iowa State University project is to foster the growth of value chains that reward small and midsize farmers who follow production practices using the highest standards of environmental and community stewardship.
The NetMBA: Value Chains http://www.netmba.com/strategy/value-chain/
Michael Porter introduced a generic value chain model. Internet Center for Management and Business Administration