Infrastructure, Value Chains, and Economic Upgrades

19 Pages Posted: 28 Aug 2018

See all articles by Xubei Luo

Xubei Luo

World Bank

Xuejiao Xu

George Washington University

Date Written: August 13, 2018

Abstract

Infrastructure development is critical to delivering growth, reducing poverty, and addressing broader development goals. This paper surveys the literature on the linkages between infrastructure investment and economic growth, discusses the role of infrastructure in participation in global value chains and supporting economic upgrades, highlights the challenges that the least developed countries face, and provides policy recommendations. It suggests that addressing the bottlenecks in infrastructure is a necessary condition to provide a window of opportunity for an economy to develop following its comparative advantage. With the right conditions, good infrastructure can support an economy, particularly a less developed economy, to reap the benefits of participation in global value chains to upgrade the economic structure.

Keywords: Industrial and Consumer Services and Products, Transport and Trade Logistics, International Trade and Trade Rules, Transport Services, Economic Growth, Industrial Economics, Economic Theory & Research

Suggested Citation

Luo, Xubei and Xu, Xuejiao, Infrastructure, Value Chains, and Economic Upgrades (August 13, 2018). World Bank Policy Research Working Paper No. 8547, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3238390

Xubei Luo (Contact Author)

World Bank ( email )

1818 H Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20433
United States

Xuejiao Xu

George Washington University ( email )

2121 I Street NW
Washington, DC 20052
United States

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