What Does It Take to Build an Inclusive Governance of Global Value Chains? A Framework for Intervention

Abstract

As important actors in global value chains (GVCs), multinational enterprises exercise coordination and control over worldwide commodity, production, service, workforce and knowledge mobility. A level playing field for all GVC stakeholders remains absent. We argue for empowering subordinated stakeholders in the design of inclusive GVC governance, as a necessary condition, to harness the power of GVCs that enable many firms to internationalise in the first place. We propose a Framework for Intervention at the level of civil society and five actions, using a revived form of multilateralism, to empower the economic “South” and fundamentally anchor change for human development.

The Emerging Bengal Tiger: Opportunities and Challenges for MNCs and Policymakers

“…MNCs such as Apple, Dell, H&M, IKEA, and Microsoft collaborate with NGOs, worldwide, to promote sustainable global supply chains (Heugens & Liu, 2021). This facilitates the empowerment of subordinated value chain stakeholders that is essential for inclusive GVC governance, such as the Bangladesh Accords, which protect worker safety and had numerous NGO signatories (Wang et al, 2023). CONCLUSION Bangladesh's sustained economic growth and strides in human development over the past two decades provide important insights for policymakers in emerging and frontier economies, who can take lessons about the importance of targeted industrial policy and developing human capital in line with the UN's SDGs.…”