The importance of local production and small-scale enterprises for Latin American development

The generation dynamic competitive advantages in Latin America and the Caribbean cannot be assumed to result automatically from the achievement of the necessary macroeconomic stability and the incorporation of part of the system of production into some dynamic segments (or niches); of the international economy. Recent empirical information on local economic development initiatives in the developed countries indicates that macroeconomic adjustment policies must be accompanied by other specific policies at the microeconomic and mesoeconomic levels. These policies must incorporate the various local public and private actors into the development strategy in order to ensure the introduction of organizational and technological innovations throughout the system of production and business, which is made up largely of small and medium-sized enterprises and microenterprises with few linkages to the globalized core of the world economy. It is therefore clear that it is necessary not only to promote endogenous development potential by giving due importance to the territorial dimension of technological policy and to small and medium-sized enterprises, but also to ensure that the production sectors have access to advanced services throughout the territorial area, to strengthen institutions and cooperation and complementation agreements in the area, and to include environmental sustainability in local development management.