scholarly journals The Informal Sector in Developing Countries: Output, Assets, and Employment

2008 ◽  
pp. 373-392 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sangeeta Pratap ◽  
Erwan Quintin
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Informal Sector

scholarly journals Targeting Performance of Community-based Development Interventions: An Econometric Analysis of a WomenFocused and Women-Managed Non-Governmental Organisation in Rural Pakistan

2015 ◽  
Vol 54 (4I-II) ◽  
pp. 825-840
Author(s):  
Hidayat Ullah Khan ◽  
Takashi Kurosaki
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Informal Sector ◽  
Local Knowledge ◽  
Poverty Reduction ◽  
Econometric Analysis ◽  
Target Groups ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Development Interventions ◽  
Rural Pakistan ◽  
Potential Use

The approach of community-based development (CBD) is expected to improve targeting and reduce programme costs of poverty reduction policies, besides other positive contributions [Mansuri and Rao (2004)]. 1 Furthermore, the use of local knowledge is expected to bear greater relevance in a situation where credible monetary data for potential use in targeting activities are not available. According to Alatas, et al. (2012), in developing countries—where the majority of potential target group is employed in the informal sector—the availability of verifiable income records is always an issue. Therefore, it is difficult to identify target groups by employing conventional targeting techniques such as means tests. For these reasons, identification through the CBD approach is expected to improve targeting.

Bridging Modernity by Improving Informal Sector for Substantially Industrialized Construction in Developing Countries

2018 ◽  
pp. 1706-1735
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Human Resources ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Informal Sector ◽  
Cost Management ◽  
Labor Cost ◽  
Decision Models ◽  
Improve Performance ◽  
Construction Productivity

We have argued in Chapters 1-3 that the construction industry in developing countries is dominated by the strong presence of SMEs and “jobbers”. The informal sector workers constitute the essential provider of human resources construction industry. So far, the weaknesses of the construction industry in developing countries have been identified. As a result, various decision models were proposed for largely improving labor cost management and scheduling (time) with the aim of improving productivity. In a single volume like this, it is unrealistic to cover all aspects to improve performance. This chapter will now provide ideas on how quality of projects can also be improved so as to maintain a balance between cost, time and quality. Furthermore, the management of onsite workshops that can lead to construction productivity will be examined.

Empirical Investigation of Formal and Informal Sectors in Waste Recycling of the Municipal Waste Management System of Developing Countries: The Case Study of Lagos State

2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oladipupo Salau ◽  
Lalita Sen ◽  
Samuel Osho ◽  
Oluwatoyin Adejonwo-Osho
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Waste Management ◽  
Informal Sector ◽  
Waste Recycling ◽  
Recycling Rate ◽  
Waste Collection ◽  
Formal Sector ◽  
Municipal Waste Management ◽  
Lagos State ◽  
Formal And Informal Sectors

Municipalities in metropolitan cities of developing countries often find it difficult to cope with the onerous task of providing waste services to their citizens due to financial constraints and poor infrastructure.  In most of these cities, waste collection services are grossly inadequate as less than half the population is served with regular and efficient waste services.  However, the shortcomings of the formal waste management system are compensated by the activities of the informal sector engaged in waste collection and make significant contributions to the MWMS through material recovery and waste recycling. In view of this, the study focuses on the roles of the formal and informal sector in municipal waste management with regards to their impacts on the recycling rate of Lagos State. In this study, we measured and compared the recycling rates between the formal and informal sectors to determine their impacts on the recycling rates of Lagos State. The study relies on primary field data, site visits and observations backed by secondary sources to investigate the range of informal sector activities in comparison to the formal sector. The findings indicate that, while both sub-sectors play significant roles in the MWMS, the informal recycling activities contribute more to the recycling rate of Lagos state than the formal sector.

scholarly journals Informality and Development

2014 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 109-126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rafael La Porta ◽  
Andrei Shleifer
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Economic Development ◽  
Informal Sector ◽  
Economic Activity ◽  
Organizational Form ◽  
Formal Sector ◽  
Dual Models

In developing countries, informal firms account for up to half of economic activity. They provide livelihood for billions of people. Yet their role in economic development remains controversial with some viewing informality as pent-up potential and others viewing informality as a parasitic organizational form that hinders economic growth. In this paper, we assess these perspectives. We argue that the evidence is most consistent with dual models, in which informality arises out of poverty and the informal and formal sectors are very different. It seems that informal firms have low productivity and produce low-quality products; and, consequently, they do not pose a threat to the formal firms. Economic growth comes from the formal sector, that is, from firms run by educated entrepreneurs and exhibiting much higher levels of productivity. The expansion of the formal sector leads to the decline of the informal sector in relative and eventually absolute terms. A few informal firms convert to formality, but more generally they disappear because they cannot compete with the much more-productive formal firms.

scholarly journals Problems of Working Women in the Rural Informal Sector of Punjab (Pakistan)

1999 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 89-99
Author(s):  
Karamat Ali ◽  
Abdul Hamid Abdul Hamid
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Informal Sector ◽  
Working Women ◽  
Variable Structure ◽  
Policy Instrument ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Formal Sector ◽  
Economic Activities ◽  
The One

The informal sector plays a significant role in Pakistan’s economy as well as in other developing countries. The role of the informal sector in solving the unemployment problem of Third World countries has become the focus of a conceptual and empirical debate in recent years. Most of the research takes a favourable view of this sector and suggests that it should be used as a policy instrument for the solution of the most pressing problems of developing countries, such as unemployment, poverty, income inequalities, etc. Before proceeding further, we will define the informal sector and differentiate it from the formal sector. There are various definitions, but the one given in an ILO report (1972) is generally considered the best. According to this report, informal sector activities are ways of doing things characterised by a heterogeneous array of economic activities with relative ease of entry, reliance on indigenous resources; temporary or variable structure and family ownership of enterprises, small scale of operation, labour intensive and adapted technology, skills acquired outside the formal school system, not depending on formal financial institutions for its credit needs; unregulated and unregistered units, and not observing fixed hours/days of operation.

scholarly journals Generic Strategies and Firm Performance: An Investigation of Informal Sector Micro-Enterprises in Kenya

2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Esther Mungai ◽  
Madara Ogot
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Firm Performance ◽  
Informal Sector ◽  
Business Strategy ◽  
Business Performance ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Business Strategies ◽  
Strategic Groups ◽  
Generic Strategies ◽  
Micro Enterprises

Micro-enterprises (MEs) have been shown to collectively be the largest employer in most developing countries thus playing a significant role in the countries economies. Using informal sector micro-enterprise furniture makers (wood and metal) in Nairobi, Kenya and based on Porter's competitive business strategies typology, this study sought to determine if the strategies employed by the informal sector MEs fit within the typology framework, and if membership within the strategic groups in the typology are a predictor of better business business performance. From the study, although membership within the two focus strategic groups of differentiation and low cost was confirmed, unlike studies done with medium and large enterprises, membership was not found to be a predictor of better business performance. Porter's typology may therefore not adequately capture the competitive business activities relevant to and directly by MEs, presenting an opportunity for research into the development of competitive business strategy typologies directly derived from their activities and therefore applicable to them.

scholarly journals Agglomeration effects and informal firms in the internal structure of cities

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (80) ◽  
pp. 93-107
Author(s):  
Andres Dominguez
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Standard Deviation ◽  
Internal Structure ◽  
Informal Sector ◽  
Local Economy ◽  
Earthquake Risk ◽  
Formal Sector ◽  
Economic Activities ◽  
Standard Deviation Increase ◽  
Content Type

Purpose This paper aims to estimate the effect of agglomeration on the probability of being an informal firm in Cali, Colombia. Informal firms produce legal goods but do not comply with official regulations. This issue is relevant because, similar to other developing countries, the informal sector in Colombia employs more than 50 per cent of the workforce. The results of this study demonstrate that one standard deviation increase in agglomeration reduces by 52 per cent the probability of being informal. Results are consistent with the idea that informal firms benefit less from agglomeration because of legal restrictions that block the relationship with formal firms. Design/methodology/approach The objective of the present paper is to estimate the effect of agglomeration on the probability that a firm – given a location – chooses to be informal. The authors deal with endogeneity issues by using soil information related to earthquake risk, which reduces the height of buildings and therefore increases the cost of agglomeration. The analysis focuses on Cali, Colombia, where the informal sector employs 60 per cent of the workforce. The registration of economic activities is used as a criterion to identify informal firms, in such a way that the percentage of informal firms is 42 per cent. Findings The authors find that the effect of agglomeration is strongly negative. The probability of being informal diminishes by 52 per cent when agglomeration increases by one standard deviation. Results in this paper shed light on how formal firms tend to be localized in high-density commercial and industrial areas, while informal firms are localized in low-density and peripheral areas where the land for production is cheaper and where they can avoid the control of authorities. Originality/value Theory argues that spatial production externalities and commuting costs are among the main forces that shape the city’s internal structure. Externalities include effects that increase firms’ production, and therefore workers’ income, when the size of the local economy grows. The authors now have strong evidence that firms’ productivity is positively related with the volume of nearby employment. Most of the empirical findings concern firms in the formal sector and, accordingly, the literature says little about the effect of agglomeration on informal firms’ location. However, this effect is crucial for developing countries where informal work is the main option for less-educated workers facing unemployment.

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