Employing a unique dataset that covers almost 6000 informal enterprises from six West African urban centers, this paper examines the backward and forward linkages of these enterprises to the formal sector. We first provide a descriptive analysis of the existing formal-informal linkages. It turns...

The possibility to outsource over the internet should revolutionize foreign outsourcing, especially for services (UNCTAD, 2004). Our model describes materials and services input allocation from domestic vs. foreign suppliers. Allocations change when firms outsource online due to access and...

Existing literature sees opportunistic behaviour of contractual partners as the main reason why rational agents underinvest in relationship-specific assets. We look beyond this well-know holdup problem and argue that financial vulnerability and short-term planning horizon can also lead to such...