Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the significance of the direct and indirect effects (through country and firm’s specific advantages) of government policies for export promotion (GPEP) on the export performance of small and medium-size enterprise (SME) Cocoa exporters in Cameroon. Design/methodology/approach To test the proposed model, data were obtained through self-administered questionnaires using snowball sampling technique to 101 SME Cocoa exporters. This was analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM) techniques to examine both the direct and indirect effects of GPEP on the export performance of SME Cocoa exporters in the South and Centre Regions of Cameroon. Findings The findings suggest that GPEP had both direct and indirect effects on the export performance of SME Cocoa exporters. Direct effect was on the usage of GPEP which reduces operating cost and increase performance. The indirect effects were through the provision of country and firms specific advantages. However, the only significant path was through the provision of export marketing information. Research limitations/implications The research is limited to one country, one sector, and two regions and does not take into consideration other factors that may influence the effect of GPEP, country, and firms specific advantages on export performance. Moreover, the non-significant paths should be interpreted with caution and further testing required in a different context. Practical implications Empirical findings are relevant for the government and SME Cocoa exporters. It informs the government about the effectiveness of GPEP and the need to disseminate marketing information using every possible medium best understood by the SMEs. It suggests an opportunity for engagement of both SMEs and government authorities in accessing the outcome of GPEP which will increase transparency, awareness, usage, and export performance. Originality/value The research has successfully developed and tested a model for analyzing the direct and indirect effects of GPEP on export performance based on the resource-based view and SEM in a context where there is a call for more empirical and theoretical work on export performance due to limited studies. The framework reveals positive effects of GPEP, country, and firms’ specific advantages as determinants of export performance.

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to assess the interaction effect of government non-financial support and firms' regulatory compliance on firms' innovativeness. Firms' regulatory compliance with environmental and safety issues has been suggested as one of the reasons why firms innovate. Such compliance provides legitimacy, improves reputation and corporate image, and enhances customer loyalty and competitive advantages, which influence firm innovativeness. However, regulatory compliance is costly and with limited resources, the role of government support is crucial as a moderator, to help firms become more compliant and influence their innovativeness.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses data from the World Bank Enterprise Innovation Survey for seven countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.FindingsRegulatory compliance has a positive and significant effect on firm innovativeness. Increased use of government non-financial support enhances the level of firm regulatory compliance and the effect of regulatory compliance on firm innovativeness.Originality/valueThe study contributes to the literature on compliance and firm innovativeness in Africa by showing how the positive effect of regulatory compliance on firm innovativeness is stronger when firms benefit from government non-financial support.

Purpose Access to finance and corruption are two major institutional obstacles hindering firm innovation in Africa whose implication on the fit between managerial characteristics and firm innovation has not been examined. The purpose of this paper is to examine whether firms may want to hire managers with a good fit when faced with institutional constraints and the authors suggest managerial level of education and experience within an industry could play a vital role in helping such firms innovate. Design/methodology/approach Secondary data was obtained from the World Bank Enterprise Survey on 17 African countries and a series of hierarchical regression analyses were conducted to achieve the aim of the research. Findings The findings show that while managers with primary and secondary education had a negative relationship with firm innovation (product and process), managers with a university degree had a positive relationship. This relationship was also confirmed when the authors’ split the full sample into two sub-samples (the firms that are institutionally constrained by access to finance and corruption) and therefore confirm the institutional implications of managers fit for firm’s innovation. Originality/value While research on the effect of management characteristics on firm innovation has focused more on large firms and mostly from developed economies testing both direct and mediation effects, little research exists as to whether the institutional obstacles faced by small firms could influence the type of managers required to drive their innovation.

The tourism and hospitality sector in Cameroon suffers from a lack of specific government policies for the development of the sector. However, different ministries are developing policies, which have implications for the performance of businesses in the hospitality sector. Nevertheless, little is known about the awareness and usage of policies by women owner-managers of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) within the hospitality sector and how usage leads to benefits or challenges for their businesses. This chapter examines this knowledge gap. Through a content analysis of data on fifteen case studies of women-owned SMEs in Cameroon, from the UK Data Archive. The findings suggest that even though some women entrepreneurs were aware of existing directives, not all are using them and for those using them, the benefits have been disproportionate. The reason for the lack of awareness and usage of policies are discussed. This research contributes to the institutional perspective by explaining how institutions could create an enabling environment and a framework that could influence the outcome for businesses in the hospitality sector. Implications to policy and practice and limitations are also discussed.

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