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Competitiveness and Industry/Sector Specific Example ProjectsArmenian Competitiveness Assessment Through a contract
with USAID/Armenia, JAA led a national competitiveness assessment (under the
Nathan-MSI GBTI IQC). The overall objective is to establish a process and
structure for productive change by assessing the competitive environment of By applying several
tools and methodologies appropriate to early competitiveness assessments—and
to encourage initial involvement of industry groups—JAA carried out a
countrywide competitiveness benchmarking exercise to collect sound
comparative data for decision-makers and investors as input to public-private
dialogue. Having assessed the
strategies and performance of nine Armenian industries (precision engineering,
IT, food processing, brandy, wine, apparel, gems & jewelry and tourism)
JAA was able to provide the stakeholders with a clear understanding of the
current and potential competitiveness of JAA also suggested
new policies developed for export development, investment promotion,
infrastructure, and human resource development to improve the quality of the
enabling environment based on cross-cutting priorities and the priorities of
competitive industries. The Competitive
Armenian Private Sector Project (CAPS) is the follow-on project to the
Armenian Competitiveness Assessment.
The objective of this assignment is to assist private sector
operations and strategies, while improving the quality of the microeconomic
business environment in sectors that have the most impact on the economy in
terms of income generation and employment.
CAPS
is
based on a cluster approach which focuses on improving the business
environment and fostering cooperation among enterprises in a particular
industry sector. The project currently
has two industry clusters: Tourism and ICT—a third industry will be chosen a
later time. JAA is also assisting the
production of an Armenian Competitiveness Report as well as providing
training on competitiveness councils and best practices to provide more
extensive briefings, and skills-development in competitiveness approaches
through a series of workshops, roundtables and seminars. JAA has examined industry performance, and
intimately involves industry leaders in planning the implementation of a
competitiveness initiative for To improve Bosnian
competitiveness and jumpstart economic growth, JAA is designing mechanisms for
public-private dialogue; introducing competitiveness concepts in the dialogue
between clusters and government; educating the public sector on
competitiveness and the need to engage the private sector; and assisting
development of a national competitiveness council. JAA is providing
technical expertise by way of a labor association development specialist and
short-term technical assistance in the area of public-private dialogue. By working directly with trade
associations, industry committees, and Regional Development Agencies (RDAs)
JAA is introducing competitiveness concepts to guide the dialogue between
business and government. These
partnerships are designed to develop strategies that advocate a pro-business investment
climate by reforming business regulations and removing trade barriers that
inhibit market linkages. The
formation of a Trade and Investment group will facilitate transactions into
the wood and tourism sectors and will help each industry pinpoint target
markets based on Bosnian assets. The objective of
this effort was the rapid but sustainable growth of the Laotian export
market, and foreign exchange generation.
The key to reaching the objective was engaging the local and regional
industries, governmental leadership, and supporting academic institutions in
ways that help jump-start initiatives in order to boost foreign exchange
revenues from tourism, agriculture and light manufacturing in the short to
medium term while improving the business environment for achieving these
results. The project was implemented in three stages: Stage 1:
Benchmarking Laotian Competitiveness.
JAA reviewed global and regional industry trends relevant to Laotian
exports such as coffee, apparel, tourism, wood products, and livestock
products. The subsequent analysis of
this information provided a national competitiveness benchmark against which
JAA could rank the current state of Laotian competitiveness in respect to
exports, investment, human resources, science and technology, infrastructure,
business environment and overall economic performance. Stage 2: Strategy
Development Workshops with Private and Public Sector Leaders. JAA developed a presentation on the current
competitiveness of Stage 3: Design of
Industry Cluster Export Strategies and Action Plans. Of the four to six original industries
engaged in Stages 1 and 2, JAA will proceed to map out a practical strategy
for at least three of the industries. The team will use a highly interactive
and participative methodology for engaging Laotian leadership groups so that
the strategies identified are both understood and supported by local
leaders. This strategy will focus on
the leading potential export growth sectors for JAA was uniquely
qualified for this assignment due to significant experience in conducting
export competitiveness initiatives in the region. The project was able to investigate the
demand-side issues for each of the clusters within the region. Through
connections into industries in the neighbor countries, the project was able
to collect information on the market opportunities for Lao companies to
supply downstream products for regional exports. JAA was initially
contracted by USAID to conduct competitiveness exercises in In October of 1998,
for the first time in Sri Lankan history, all 5 leading business associations
came together and issued a set of 10 key priorities, calling on the
Government to work in bi-partisan ways to address these. Since that time,
priorities have been expressed annually with greater levels of analytical
sophistication, and have led to direct sessions with the head of state and
business leaders. Business and
government leaders were so impressed at every level that the Minister of
Industrial Development, the Minister of Trade, and the Board of Investment
requested competitiveness-training sessions for approximately 20 top staff in
each of these three ministries. Moreover, The Minister of Industrial
Development adjusted his productivity campaign to include a focus on
competitiveness; the Minister of Trade, who was trying to generate support in
On the basis of the
results from the competitiveness exercise, USAID issued a Request for
Proposal (RFP), and JAA (through the Nathan-MSI GBTI consortium) was awarded
the contract to implement a longer-term Competitiveness Initiative. JAA
returned to On the basis of these
positive results, USAID extended the project twice, for a total of an
additional three years (through 2007), adding approximately $8M to the
earlier budgets. JAA is currently focusing on workforce development, cluster
sustainability and policy reform. JAA
assisted the Government of Sri Lanka establish a National Competitiveness
Council. Also, JAA worked with partner
organizations in Croatian Competitiveness Initiative JAA has been
working closely in In response, JAA
helped catalyze the formation of the Croatian Competitiveness Council (CCC),
composed of fifteen leading Croatian CEOs, including two leaders from HUP – In order to serve a
wider constituency JAA helped convene the heads of
Croatian Government officials, labor unions and educational institutions;
this work culminated in the formation of the National Competitiveness
Council. The purpose of this council
is to subsume the voices of several previously disparate sectors of the
Croatian workforce. Further, the
Council helps the Government set priorities and monitor
the implementation of national competitiveness programs. The project also assisted several secondary
sites form competitiveness councils to undertake smaller, regional
initiatives while simultaneously strengthening the embryonic associations. The three major
industry clusters that the Croatian Competitiveness Initiative is working
with are ICT, wood products and tourism.
Initiated in March 2003, the Wood Products Cluster brought together
representatives from all parts of the value chain, including the monopoly
supplier, Croatia Forests. The cluster
also brought in the Ministries of Economy, of Agriculture, and of Forestry,
as well as academic institutions. The
cluster is well on its way to achieving its aim of more than doubling current
revenues from 800-million euro to 1.9-billion euro in by 2010.
In order to cater to the needs of The USAID Africa
Bureau funded this initial study and assessment in In this pilot
program for Africa, JAA applied methods of Competitiveness Analysis to
industry clusters in The initiative
lasted about six months and involved intensive work with industry clusters
and the identification of case studies of competitive enterprises that could
serve as models to others. The head of the leading business association and
the Finance Minister requested immediate follow-on assistance. Towards the
end of the study, President Museveni requested a
personal briefing at his country home two hours outside of The broad objective
of the preliminary competitiveness exercise in Southeast Asia was to develop
national strategies tailored to country-specific conditions in The program in Based on the
success of an initial Southeast Asia regional competitiveness exercise, USAID
funded a multi-year project in The Thailand
Initiative worked with the multimedia, handicrafts, high-value agricultural
products, gems, silk, seafood and tourism/ecotourism clusters. By the end of
the project, JAA’s in-country counterpart, The
Keenan Institute-Asia (KI Asia), had been trained to continue implementing
strategic and policy initiatives using the cluster engagement
methodology. JAA conducted five
competitiveness cluster-training workshops for industry clusters and a series
of training events for JAA’s Thai
counterparts. In The Diversification of Kazakhstan’s Economy through
Cluster Development in Non-Extracting Economic Sectors Program Through a contract with Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Economy and
Budget Planning, JAA developed a national competitiveness strategy as well as
industry strategies and action plans for improving the productivity and
competitiveness of seven key non-oil industries (identified through in depth
research, analysis and dialogue) in Kazakhstan. The overall objective of this program was
to identify existing, emerging and potential manufacturing, agricultural and
service clusters in JAA also worked with
the industries and the government to resolve
constraints in the business environment through private-public dialogue
mechanisms. With JAA’s
guidance the government set up a competitiveness working group to prioritize
and resolve the key constraints in each industry. JAA also conducted a skills and knowledge transfer
program, designed
specifically to pass on skills and knowledge to key Government officials,
business leaders, and members of the private sector/academia. The full range of training topics
included private sector development methodologies, value chain analysis, SME
issues, product/market research, and export/trade promotion. The sectors
involved in this project were tourism, textiles, oil and gas equipment, food
processing, logistics and transport, construction materials, and metallurgy. The USAID-funded
PISDAC project is a three-part competitiveness initiative focused on the
creation of industry clusters, and workforce development. The first phase of
the PISDAC initiative ran through August 2004. During that time, JAA laid the foundations
for a series of reforms aimed at closing the gap between Pakistani enterprises
and firms that produce the highest value products. By creating Strategy-Working Groups (SWOGs), three primary industries—Dairy, Marble &
Granite, and IT—began to identify elements of a sector strategy intended to
upgrade productivity, increase competitiveness, and foster public-private
dialogue. By the beginning of
Phase II (September 2004 – August 2006), a fourth SWOG had formed
representing the Gems and Jewelry sector.
Each of the four SWOGs was encouraged to broaden
their membership ranks to include major industry players, representatives
from support industries, and relevant government officials at the national,
provincial, and local levels. For JAA,
the second phase included a significant amount of support/technical
assistance to the Small and Medium Enterprise Development Authority (SMEDA),
the local SME development partner. PISDAC assisted
SMEDA in benchmarking itself institutionally and operationally with other
similar entities in Over the life of
the project the Government of Pakistan expressed a strong interest in the SWOGs and in the PISDAC methodology. The Ministry of Industry, Production and
Special Initiatives, the Export Promotion Bureau, and the Government of
Punjab are actively supporting PISDAC SWOGs and the
PISDAC project. EPB has agreed to
collaborate with SMEDA and PISDAC to coordinate resources with EPB financing
some technical assistance and study tours for the SWOGs. The high level of responsiveness of both
industry leaders and high level GOP officials led to a subsequent contract
extending the project for another two years, to February 2006. The third phase of
PISDAC (February 2006 – March 2008) is convening three additional SWOGs for the surgical instrument, wooden furniture, and
horticulture industries, while introducing competitiveness related policy and
institutional reforms. By helping
industries take advantage of these reforms, PISDAC will contribute to the
sustainability of economic growth in JAA is a core firm
for the EXPRO program consortium in JAA has helped to
establish a network of marketing representatives in the US, and to analyze
the US demand for natural tropical fruit juices and concentrates to help
Salvadoran farmers/producers understand the opportunities available in the
U.S. market, how to export tropical juices and concentrates, and how to
position themselves as juice or concentrate exporters rather than fruit
exporters. JAA also helped plan and conduct a seminar in The Technical
Assistance for Policy Reform II (TAPR II) project supports the overall
USAID/Egypt goal of promoting a globally competitive Egyptian economy
benefiting all Egyptians equitably. In
partnership with BearingPoint, JAA provided senior competitiveness advisory
expertise to the country team writing the Egypt Competitiveness Report, which
was presented at the World Economic Forum regional conference in May
2006. The JAA team conducted an
evaluation of the current Agricultural Export and Rural Incomes Project that
addressed a wide range of components including trade association development,
university capacity building and improvement of public-private sector
communication, biotechnology research, smallholder horticulture and
dairy/livestock development, and business development services. In addition, the JAA competitiveness expert
conducted meetings with key private sector leaders and the National
Competitiveness Council in an effort to support the council dialogue and
activities. JAA developed and
implemented a national strategy to help the governments and private sectors
of World Bank Toolkit of Analytical Methods to Enhance
the Competitiveness of Agricultural Supply Chains and Agribusiness in
Sub-Saharan In this flagship program, JAA was contracted by the World Bank’s Environmentally and Socially Sustainable Development
(ESSD) Group to prepare a toolkit of implementation approaches centered on
value chain principles to enhance the competitiveness of agriculture and
agribusiness in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The toolkit provides a number of
implementation tools and methodologies based on value chain concepts that can
be used in the context of agricultural and agribusiness development
programs. The over-arching purpose of
this document is to provide practical approaches that focus on improving the
competitiveness of agricultural supply and value chains. Value chain analysis is an indispensable
part of many approaches; however the tools discussed in this document have
been selected for their usefulness in guiding and supporting market-focused
private sector initiative and action. The toolkit includes 20+ cases describing
how the tools have been effectively implemented. Cases have been selected from many
countries: The bulk of the toolkit is individual tools and
approaches. The document also
discusses several key themes which the tools apply or take into account. In this regard, however, the important
“take-away” from this document is not the identification of common themes,
but rather the insight that the use of value chain-based approaches must add
value, create opportunity, and reach markets.
This toolkit provides planners
and decision makers with practical tools for implementing effective value and
supply chain development programs.
It provides a common framework to public and private stakeholders for prioritizing decisions that
will have a competitive impact on sectors and sub-sectors. It also provides practical tools for
planning, programming and animating, and provides policy-makers, business leaders, members of the development community,
and researchers and practitioners with methods and approaches that can
be used to promote the development of traditional and non-traditional value
chains in Sub-Saharan Africa. For information on more projects related to Competitiveness, please view our JAA Corporate Capabilities and Qualifications Document
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