Abstract
The intellectual assets underpinning the modern knowledge economy are not normally
associated with activities in the primary sector. This raises the question whether resourcebased
developing countries are eternally relegated to the Also-Runs in global competition or
at least whether they need to disassociate themselves from their economic mainstay in order
for catch-up to materialise. The answer to this question is of paramount importance to many
developing countries, especially in Latin America and Africa. This analysis contributes to the
discussion in two novel ways. The first is the focus on technological trajectories that start in
or around resource-based activities and subsequently become more knowledge intensive.
Hence the study shows the direct contribution resource-based activities make towards the
development of a knowledge economy. The second is the attempt systematically to compare
technological trajectories in Africa’s most sophisticated economy with those in three Latin
American countries at different stages of development. By contrast, this study concentrates
on countries from continents that are customarily lumped together in the failure category. It
analyses examples of technological learning and focuses on what works (not), and why, and
whether insights from a collection of case studies can inform a broader policy discussion
about how best to reconcile the demands of the knowledge economy with intensive resource
endowments.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:tut/oai:encore.tut.ac.za:d1001624 |
| Date | 01 September 2009 |
| Creators | Lorentzen, JO, Pogue, TE |
| Contributors | Human Sciences Research Council |
| Publisher | Tshwane University of Technology |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | |
| Rights | Tshwane University of Technology |
| Relation | Institute for Economic Research on InnovationTshwane University of Technology |
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