Estimation of the direct and indirect effects of a cluster development program in Argentina

Workshop; Estimation of the direct and indirect effects of a cluster development program in Argentina; 2014

Between 1998 and 2002, Argentina?s economy plunged into a recession. Over this period, gross domestic product fell 12 percent and private invest- ment fell 32 percent. The effect of the recession on small and medium enter-prises (SMEs) was even larger. In this context, the Province of Córdoba, with the support of the Multilateral Investment Fund, designed a cluster develop- ment program (CDP) to support SMEs in specific sectors. To select the sec- tors, program managers weighed current characteristics, future prospects, and the ability of firms in the sector to take advantage of the program?s activities. The managers of the program selected information and communica- tion technologies (ICT) in the City of Córdoba, furniture production in Rio Segundo and Calamuchita, and regional goods production in the northwest of the Province of Córdoba.