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\"This book explores the historical origins, contemporary dynamics and future challenges of social cohesion in South, Southeast and East Asia-one of the most dynamic and at the same time heterogeneous regions in the world, in terms of economic, political and human development. The comparative case studies in this volume develop a better understanding of social cohesion in Asia by exploring how social cohesion is understood, analyzed and sometimes politically instrumentalized. Examining different dimensions and qualities of social cohesion and how they are linked together, it also discusses the challenges of social cohesion in individual societies. The case studies include examples from Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Myanmar, Singapore, South Korea and Mainland China and building on the conceptual work and empirical findings of the Asian Social Cohesion Radar, this book provides detailed cross-country analyses over the past fifteen years. Combining rigorous conceptual and theoretical reasoning with a systematic empirical analysis of trends across the region, Social Cohesion in Asia will be of great interest to students and scholars of Asian politics, international relations, political sociology, comparative politics and Democratization Studies\"-- Provided by publisher.

Small-scale cross-border trade is ubiquitous in Africa. This paper uses disaggregated trade data to assess the determinants of the product portfolio of different groups of small-scale traders at the border between Uganda and Kenya. Using a weighted fractional response model, it finds that wheelchair-bound traders have a significantly higher propensity to handle products that are subject to high protection than other traders. This result suggests that border officials discriminate in favor of traders with disability in the enforcement of trade policies or the solicitation of bribes. More generally, the findings question the effective implementation of preferential trade agreements in Africa and call for trade policy reforms to be complemented by targeted measures to reduce the hardship faced by vulnerable groups within the population.

The mobility restrictions and health measures imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic have had highly adverse impacts on small-scale cross-border trade. One coping strategy that traders have pursued is to engage in group trade, that is, to combine their loads and cross the border using a larger cart or vehicle. This paper uses a cross-sectional data set, derived from a survey of traders at the borders connecting the Democratic Republic of Congo with Burundi and Rwanda, to assess the determinants of participation in organised group trade. The findings from the econometric analysis point to association membership, business registration, and motorised transport as being important factors for traders’ participation in new cooperative trade arrangements. Moreover, successful group traders have been in a position to increase their incomes by reaching new clients and obtaining higher prices. These results suggest that policy efforts to promote group trade could usefully focus on enhancing the integration of small-scale traders into regional supply chains. However, group trade has mainly benefitted the better-off segments of the trader population, so any assistance projects to enhance group trade risk further increasing the income gap in border communities. JEL classification: F14, F15, O17

Unlock export potential in developing countries with proven strategies for trade diversification and competitiveness. This comprehensive guide provides emerging lessons for navigating new markets and achieving sustainable economic growth. Breaking Into New Markets tackles the urgent need for export diversification in commodity-dependent, low-income countries. Discover how to improve trade policy, enhance existing exports, and break into new geographic markets. Learn to increase services exports and overcome obstacles to competitiveness. This resource is tailored for policymakers, trade specialists, and the international development community seeking effective strategies for global trade success.

In this article, a statistical model is developed to analyze determinants of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Polish food industry. Data on FDI inflows from three investor home country clusters is related to characteristics of 12 food industry branches. The results indicate that firm size, privatization speed, value‐added, and import share are important determinants of food industry FDI. The findings confirm the importance of a swift reduction of state control over agro‐industrial enterprises, while pointing to the need for effective competition policies in transition countries to contain potentially emerging market power of foreign multinationals in oligopolistic food industry branches. [Econ‐Lit citations: F23 (multinational firms); P33 (international linkages in transition); Q13 (agribusiness)] © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

The paper investigates the factors that influence the distribution of foreign direct investment (FDI) across countries of investor-origin and manufacturing industries in Poland. The results confirm the general appropriateness of the basic gravity model formulation for FDI analysis in transition countries, as well as important links between FDI, trade, and labor costs. However, considerable diversity across manufacturing industries is found with respect to the extent to which factors such as capital costs and industry competitiveness influence foreign investment activities. Hence, generalizing claims regarding the determinants of FDI flows should be treated with care.

International trade was deeply affected by the global financial and economic crisis. Mimicking worldwide trends, imports from and exports to the Middle East and North Africa dropped significantly in 2009. This sudden decline in global trade should not divert attention away from four major developments in global economic integration that have shaped the region's trade policies and performance over the past decade: the emergence of global supply chains, the growth of trade in services, the rise of China and India as major international trading powers, and regional integration. The first development is the rise of global production networks in which different stages of the production of a single good occur at different locations. As a result of this development, consumer products often contain parts, components, and inputs from a large number of countries. The second major trend relates to trade in services. With the wave of liberalization and of information and communications-related technological developments, off-shoring in services such as back-office work processes, call center operations, medical transcription, accounting, and legal research has boomed. India is a good example of a country that has hugely benefited from this trend. The third important development is the emergence of China and India as new trade, innovation, and growth poles alongside the United States and Europe. The fourth development is the increase in regional and preferential trade agreements, which have been proliferating, not least because progress in multilateral trade negotiations under the auspices of the World Trade Organization has been slow. Integration with selected partners can help countries reap benefits from international integration while avoiding the large-scale adjustment needs that are often associated with broader-based trade reforms. The Middle East and North Africa comprises countries that are resource-poor but labor-abundant, resource-rich and labor-abundant, and resource-rich and labor-importing, each displaying its own idiosyncrasies. The eleven chapters of this volume examine the region's trade policy reforms and performance by focusing on the four key developments in international trade, with a twist. Instead of examining production chains as such, the volume focuses on export diversification (part one), a major development challenge in the region, especially for oil exporters. It then explores services trade (part two), the relations with China and India (part three), and regional integration (part four).

Available quantitative studies on the effects of textiles market liberalization consistently indicate considerable shifts in production and trade, with output expanding particularly in Asian developing countries and contracting in industrialized countries. Even though all the reviewed studies foresee increases in global welfare as a result of liberalization, there is considerable variation in the magnitude of expected benefits and their distribution. This survey discusses the available assessments and highlights the differences in analytical approaches and data that trigger the variation in results.