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This book on the regional development theory analyzes the institutional environment, singling out three factors: the textile industry; government that provided key infrastructural provisions; and cotton-grower associations that were able to counter-balance the monopsony of the textile companies.

As decentralization advances, the question of local economic development acquires more significance. How can local governments and other local actors such as local producers and their associations, community based organizations, as well as NGOs and donors contribute to local economic development and poverty reduction? This article examines how the context for local economic development has drastically changed. It stresses lack of demand and the absence of meso-level institutions, i. e. institutions at the level of sector and area. Their absence deters investment responses by enterprises and households. In terms of local development initiatives, a distinction is made between community economic development and enterprise or business development. (InWent/DÜI)

This paper is a reflection on the recent trends and future of rural local government in Zimbabwe. The paper begins with a brief description of the dualistic and very unequal preindependence local government structures. The postindependence era is subdivided into two phases: A first phase of continued separate development, and a second phase in which former 'European' rural councils and the 'African' district councils are being amalgamated. The research is based on representative samples of audited accounts. The postindependence income and expenditure trends of the two main rural local authorities and of the District Development Fund are presented. Disparities between and within types of local authorities are calculated. Against this background the (amalgamated) Rural District Councils Act (1987) is examined and key issues are highlighted. The paper ends with a brief assessment of the policy experience.

AbstractAs decentralisation advances, the question of local economic development acquires more significance. How can local governments and other local actors such as local producers and their associations, community based organisations, as well as NGOs and donors contribute to local economic development and poverty reduction? This article begins by examining how the context for local economic development has drastically changed. It stresses lack of demand and the absence of meso‐level institutions, i.e. institutions at the level of sector and area. Their absence deters investment responses by enterprises and households. In terms of local development initiatives, a distinction is made between community economic development and enterprise or business development. The first seeks to facilitate household economic diversification as an essential strategy of rural and urban livelihood; the second, enterprise development, seeks specialisation of the local economic base. These two lines are complemented by a third category, namely locality development, designed to create local public goods and positive externalities. The final section elaborates on the principal actors and their roles, stressing the importance of joint action and collective learning. Local governments have an important facilitating role, creating a favourable business environment and infrastructure conditions, and to contribute to convergence in decision‐making. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Decentralisation to local governments has acquired new dimensions. These dimensions refer to delivery of basic services as well as to public or collective demands and goals. Enablement is central to new decentralisation in which the role of government is to facilitate and regulate the overall framework within which other actors can make their most effective contribution. After situating decentralisation, I explore the notion of enablement. Subsequently the concept of local-government enablement of communities is operationalised. Criteria are formulated and applied to a (nonrepresentative) sample of local governments in seven countries. It is concluded that introducing enablement in local planning is comparatively easy. However, changing regulatory, administrative and financial public decisionmaking processes is much more difficult. In the final part of the paper I examine a number of issues in the local-governance debate. Decentralisation to local government takes place in the context of decentralisation to market and to communities. Issues are identified on the supply and demand sides of governance, and on the question of embedding of government. New decentralisation raises a new class of problems, for which, as yet, few answers are available.

"Lead firms, development organisations, donors and governments view value chains and voluntary standards as vital instruments for achieving millennium development goals through trade and market-related interventions. The precise foundations for these development strategies, which suggest positive development outcomes from integration of poor actors into value chains, are as yet underdeveloped. The interdisciplinary work in this volume shows how trade is managed and asks theory-driven questions about how value chains relate to locally-rooted development processes. Policy makers and development practitioners are increasingly using value chain analysis to frame pro-poor development interventions. This book offers multiple conceptualizations of development outcomes of inclusion of small producers, firms and workers in value chains. Processes of inclusion at different scales are unpacked in order to identify the terms of participation of small producers, firms and workers. As value chains are embedded, the book further argues that inclusion can be conceptualized as the degree of alignment between value chain logics and the institutions and capacities in the local business system. The combination of inclusive governance and endogenous development informs a grounded debate on roles of development-oriented partnerships. Chapters in this volume draw on multiple strands of economics, sociology, political science, geography and management studies; and for empirical grounding engage in comparative analysis of cases from Latin America, SubSaharan Africa and East and South East Asia. These are combined with processes taking place at a global level, such as the proliferation of standards and the growth of roundtables and multi-stakeholder partnerships. The contributions explore contrasts between contexts, between industries or commodities/products, and between conceptual frameworks; and the context dependency of development impact necessitates cross-case investigations. This collection will be of interest to scholars in development studies, economics, business studies, as well as to development policy makers."--EBL Website

AbstractSolidarity economy (SE) initiatives constitute a worldwide phenomenon that is today at the heart of numerous economic and social debates. They are active in very diverse economic sectors, aiming for example to create employment for poor and low‐qualified workers. We begin with presenting a Polanyian framework for the analysis of such economic activities, which enables us to develop a plural and integral conception of a productive organisation. We draw on Polanyi's thesis that economy is a political and institutionalised process and present a historic overview of the construction of the SE 'sector' in Brazil. We put forward the hypothesis that the SE today in Brazil represents a social movement. Then, we ask ourselves if the SE movement led to a change in grassroots economic initiatives, such as 'people's cooperatives'. We present the results of exploratory research undertaken on 15 people's cooperatives in the State of Rio de Janeiro and its conclusions. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.