International supply chains require the coordination of numerous activities across multiple countries and firms. This paper develops a theoretical model of supply chains in which the measure of tasks completed within a firm is determined by parameters that define transaction costs and the cost...

Trade growth has slowed sharply since the global financial crisis. U.S. trade data highlights that arm's-length trade-trade between unaffiliated firms-accounts disproportionately for the overall post-crisis trade slowdown. This is partly because arm's-length trade depends more heavily than...

This paper shows that the creation of an independent regulatory agency is often not a necessary or sufficient condition to help attract private participation in the operation and financing of the water and sanitation sector in developing countries. However, the odds of an impact are...

This report presents an overview of current and projected market trends for off-grid lighting. It was commissioned and coordinated by Lighting Africa,a joint initiative from IFC and the World Bank.The report provides a snapshot of the off-grid lighting market and provides industry level data and...

Recent research on productivity spillovers from affiliates of multinational corporations in developing and emerging economies finds that backward linkages from affiliates of foreign-owned firms to local suppliers constitute the main channel transmitting productivity spillovers. This finding has...

Shared Prosperity through Inclusive Business: How Successful Companies Reach the Base of the Pyramid summarizes the practical lessons learned from IFC clients that successfully reach low-income people as suppliers or customers. There are lessons for each phase of the value chain-including...

This paper discusses the results of a survey of multinational corporations with affiliates in developing countries. The paper explores corporate perspectives and decision making across the stages of the investment cycle: attraction, entry and establishment, operations and expansion, linkages...