Acquisition of Technological Capability in Small Firms in Developing Countries - by H Romijn (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

An authoritative examination of how small firms in developing countries acquire technological capability - the knowledge and skills required to operate technology effectively and to adapt it to local conditions. It fills a gap in the established literature on technological capability, which has neglected the small-scale sector in spite of the important role it plays in employment generation. The author develops a methodology for a quantitative assessment of the learning process, using case material from the small-scale capital goods sector in Pakistan's Punjab Province.

Review Quotes

'A thorough review of the literature combined with a detailed and imaginatively done field study make this book an unusually important contribution to our understanding of the role of small scale firms in the development of national technological capability.' - Henry J. Bruton, Professor of Economics, Williams College, Massachusetts

'This is an important addition to the growing literature on technological capability. It represents one of the very few detailed empirical investigations of the nature and determinants of technological capability among small scale activities in developing countries, showing that the development of technological capability plays a significant role in this sector, as well as among the large firms which form the usual focus of such investigations.' - Frances Stewart, Director, Queen Elizabeth House, University of Oxford

About the Author

HENNY ROMIJN is Senior Research Officer at Queen Elizabeth House, University of Oxford, and the Development Research Institute, Tilburg University, Netherlands. Her work has focused on industrialization, technological development and small enterprise development. She has worked in various small enterprise promotion projects in East Africa, South Asia and Southeast Asia of the International Labour Organization. She is co-author of Small-scale Production: Strategies for Industrial Restructuring.