You have recently been appointed as a senior advisor in the domestic and overseas trade division in your country’s ministry of trade and development. Despite a high birth rate and a good education system, the country has a poor record of investment in domestic manufacturing.
You have been instructed to put together a strategy to attract overseas investment in trade and industry. One of your major challenges is the lack of protection of employee rights and working conditions. Many domestic manufacturers will be highly resistant to change; yet, to attract international investment, things will have to change.
1. Some government ministers and business leaders are skeptical about globalization.
What compelling arguments could you formulate to illustrate the advantages?
2. How would you go about modernizing labor rights in your country if overseas manufacturers are encouraged to locate production there?
3. Domestic environmentalists are concerned that the natural environment will be impacted by an influx of manufacturing. How would you address their concerns?
4. There is a powerful lobby in the country that supports local manufacturers, some with poor working conditions and pay; they will need to be convinced that they will not be adversely affected by overseas manufacturers and that they need to modernize. How would you handle this sensitive problem?