Suchergebnisse

This article reviews learning processes as key to successful economic adjustment. It discusses results of research conducted in Chile, focused on the agroindustry and footwear sectors. It identifies specific problems that large and small firms face to upgrade production, and stresses the limits of focusing exclusively on market refoms for achieving growth. The article shows how institutions reshape to facilitate learning and improve performance in Chile, particularly the relations between firms, the reorientation of trade associations, and the state's role as facilitator of collective learning processes. (DSE/DÜI)

Legal reforms throughout Latin America have increased the transparency of the criminal justice process and improved defendants' rights. Many scholars conjecture that such reforms also improve "good governance" and by extension economic development. Paradoxically, despite such assertions, there are few quantitative studies that examine the precise effect of such legal reforms. Using original data sets, the impact of Chile's criminal law reforms on the rights of criminals and economic development is tested. The results show that Chile's criminal law reform has enhanced defendants' rights by reducing the percent of individuals incarcerated. The reform has had a positive effect on regional economic activity, but little effect on foreign direct investment at the regional level.