Enhancing The Role Of Smes In Global Value Chains

This report identifies the ways in which governments, the business community, and international organisations can facilitate SMEs’ gainful participation in global value chains through policies, practices and targeted support programmes.

This report identifies the ways in which governments, the business community, and international organisations can facilitate SMEs’ gainful participation in global value chains through policies, practices and targeted support programmes.

Globalized production networks, or global value chains, provide an opportunity for SMEs to upscale their business models and to grow across borders. This process can enhance SME competitiveness, create more jobs, and promote inclusive growth in developing Asia. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the ADB Institute (ADBI) recognize the importance of integrating SMEs into global value chains. To provide pathways for such integration, this study examines ways of encouraging participation in value chains, and explores policy solutions to address the financial and nonfinancial barriers faced by these enterprises.

This report's focus is making global value chains (GVCs) more inclusive. To achieve inclusiveness is by overcoming participation constraints for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and facilitation access for Low Income Developing Countries (LIDCs). The underlying assumption is that most firms in LIDCs are SMEs. Even larger firms in LIDCs are likely to face similar challenges to SMEs, including a less supportive domestic operating environment and weaker institutions that lead to higher fixed costs and challenges to compete on the international markets. The two major points of this report are (1) participation in GVCs is heterogeneous and uneven, across and within countries, and (2) available data and survey-based evidence suggest that SMEs’ participation in GVCs is mostly taking place through indirect contribution to exports, rather than through exporting directly. The report makes the case that policy action, at the national and multilateral level, can make a difference in achieving more inclusive GVCs through: a holistic approach to reform spanning trade, investment, and domestic policies countries and investments in expanding the statistical base and analysis of GVCs and in sharing knowledge on best practices on enabling policies and programs. The report elaborates on three broad areas of recommendations: (1) establishing a trade and investment action plan for inclusiveness defining clear and achievable objectives on trade and investment policy and identifying the necessary complementary domestic policy actions; (2) complementing trade, investment, and domestic policy actions by providing the needed political leadership and support to enhance collaboration across the sectors, and establishing global platforms for sharing best practices; and (3) providing political support for the establishment of a multi-year plan to expand and upgrade the statistical foundation necessary to increase the capacity of all countries to identify and implement policies that can contribute to stronger, more inclusive and sustainable growth and development, globally.

This joint OECD and World Bank Group report, presented to G20 Trade Ministers in October 2015, focuses on the challenge of making GVCs more “inclusive” by overcoming participation constraints for SMEs and facilitating access for LIDCs.

This book examines how global value chains have evolved and the policy challenges they have created.

This volume is a compilation of the studies that underlie the synthesis report on global value chains, entitled Staying Competitive in the Global Economy: Moving Up the Value Chain.

This compilation of 22 firm-specific case studies is an important contribution to the discussion of 'servicification' trends in manufacturing. 'Services have increased in importance and value in many manufacturing value chains, making companies that produce physical products look more like service enterprises. What services do global value chains use in their operations, how important are they and how do economic policies shape firms' configurations, operations, and location of global value chains? This book addresses these questions and more. The interviewed firms, based in 12 APEC economies, come from different sectors ranging from multinational automotive, construction equipment, and electrical appliance manufacturers to small and medium manufacturers of watches or chemical for water treatment. The book analyses what specific services are important in different stages of the value chain, and whether they are typically provided in-house or outsourced. Contents:Manufacturing-Related Services (Patrick Low and Gloria O Pasadilla)Manufacturing of Aircraft Control Systems in the Philippines (Andre Wirjo and Gloria O Pasadilla)Industrial Welding Services in Thailand (William Haines)Manufacturing of Mining and Construction Equipment (David Sit and Patrick Low)Manufacturing of Computer Servers (Yuhua Zhang)Wastewater Treatment Services (Arian Hassani and Andre Wirjo)Manufacturing of Automotive Components in the ASEAN Region (Denise Cheung)Manufacturing of Oil and Gas Industry Equipment in Singapore (Andre Wirjo and Gloria O Pasadilla)Car Manufacturing in the Philippines (Sherry Stephenson)Manufacturing of Thermal Power Generation Equipment (Gloria O Pasadilla)Production of Precision Die and Machine Parts in Thailand (Denise Cheung and Andre Wirjo)Manufacturing of Refrigerators (David Sit)Watch Manufacturing (Deborah Elms)Manufacturing of Automotive Components in Mexico: Perspectives from Three Firms (Andre Wirjo, Gloria O Pasadilla and Joel G Bassig)Manufacturing of Telecommunications Equipment (Huani Zhu and Gloria O Pasadilla)Manufacturing of Printed Circuit Boards in Canada (Ben Shepherd)Wine Industry in Chile (Karina Fernandez-Stark and Penny Bamber)Integrated Logistics Solutions Provider in Mexico (Andre Wirjo and Gloria O Pasadilla)Remanufacturing Services in the Construction Machinery Value Chain (Katherine Tait and Gary Gereffi)Manufacturing of Consumer Electronic Appliances in Indonesia (Emmanuel A San Andres)Fresh Cherry Industry in Chile (Penny Bamber and Karina Fernandez-Stark) Readership: Researchers, students and academics who are interested in international trade; trade economists; policymakers and general public who are interested in manufacturing related topics.