In many low- and middle-income countries most micro and small enterprises (MSEs) struggle to upgrade into medium-sized and large enterprises. An extensive literature offers manifold explanations for the phenomenon but no conclusive answer on what the most important factors for MSE upgrading are:...

Many low- and middle-income countries suffer from a lack of medium-sized companies, which tend to be the main creators of higher-income employment as well as the motors of innovation and economic diversification. The chief reason is that few micro and small enterprises are able to upgrade, that...