IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/inteco/v182y2025ics2110701725000228.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Leveraging global value chains for innovation: the case of SMEs

Author

Listed:
  • Eissa, Yasmine
  • Zaki, Chahir

Abstract

In this paper, we study the relationship between global value chains (GVC) participation and firms’ innovation, with a focus on unveiling opportunities for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) bound with structural disadvantages. Using firm-level data from the World Bank Enterprise Surveys, we contribute to the existing literature in three ways. First, we analyze the impact of GVC participation on different types of innovation, especially product versus process ones. Second, we bridge literature strands on internal (R&D spending) and external (GVC orientation) innovation inputs and explore whether they act as substitutes. Third, we explore the moderating effect of GVC participation on SMEs innovation. Our findings show that GVC participation incentivizes product and process innovation. In addition, it serves as a substitute for R&D spending and helps SMEs innovate. The GVC effect is particularly significant in middle-income countries with adequate absorptive capacity. Our results remain robust when using alternative methodologies.

Suggested Citation

  • Eissa, Yasmine & Zaki, Chahir, 2025. "Leveraging global value chains for innovation: the case of SMEs," International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 182(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:inteco:v:182:y:2025:i:c:s2110701725000228
    DOI: 10.1016/j.inteco.2025.100599
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2110701725000228
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.inteco.2025.100599?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Global value chains; Innovation; Firm-level;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F14 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Empirical Studies of Trade
    • O32 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Management of Technological Innovation and R&D
    • F10 - International Economics - - Trade - - - General

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:inteco:v:182:y:2025:i:c:s2110701725000228. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/21107017 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.