Resource-based industries – Innovation in Resource-Based Technology Clusters:From coffee production to machines for optical selection in Costa Rica
Guiliani reviews a case of lateral migration of technology from resource industries in Costa Rica. Xeltron, a domestic firm, is a producer of machines for optical selection, which was started up in the 1970’s as a knowledge intensive input supplier of coffee producers. Triggered by domestic demand, the company developed optical selectors for coffee beans,…
read more >>Resource-based Technology Innovation in South Africa: Innovations in South Africa’s Off-grid Concessions Programme
Clark reviews South Africa’s off-grid electricity concessions programme, an important component the National Integrated Electrification Programme. This programme was aimed at offering access to photovoltaic solar home systems in deep rural areas, pending the supply of grid electricity throughout the country. It is a case study contribution to the Human Sciences Research Council’s project to…
read more >>What Theory and International Experience Suggest about the Role of Manufacturing in Good Employment Growth for South Africa
Although econometric evidence is not very strong, there seems no reason to doubt that parts of the manufacturing sector have been drivers of growth in many countries. Much microeconomic evidence attests to technological progress within manufacturing and a considerable spillover to other sectors. This spillover may be direct (manufacturing produces machinery and equipment that raise…
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