INTRODUCTION TO CLUSTERS IN ASIA

5. Agro-based clusters in Asia

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5.1 INTRODUCTION TO CLUSTERS IN ASIA

Unsurprisingly for such a large and diverse continent, there is considerable variety in ACs in Asia. While ACs are almost non-existent in countries such as Uzbekistan and Tajikistan Ji-Hyeon et al., 2007, they play a central role in the development of agriculture and agro-based industry in other countries Malaysia, 2006. They differ in the extent of their dynamism; some are largely “dormant” or “embryonic” while others are highly dynamic Sandee, 1998. Similarly, some owe much of their growth to explicit state initiatives, some to other institutions such as development agencies and universities, while others have grown in a more bottom-up fashion. The case studies in this chapter highlight these and other areas of difference. There are, however, some elements of commonality to be found when looking at ACs in Asia. One of these elements is the context within which studies of these clusters have been carried out. The majority of studies of ACs do not study them as distinct phenomena but have seen them as examples of industrial clusters more generally. This treatment of ACs as no different from other industrial clusters partly reflects the context within which much policy action in this area occurs. For example, in Indonesia, there is no explicit government policy for the promotion of agro-industrial clusters. Instead, promotion of ACs occurs through programmes promoting SME clusters more generally. Likewise, most of the literature on Indonesian ACs reviewing the success of these programmes makes little distinction between ACs and industrial clusters for example, Sandee, 1998 and Tambunan, 2005; similarly the lack of differentiation is apparent in much of the work undertaken by intergovernmental organizations. UNIDO’s work in promoting the food-processing cluster of Pune in India, for example, is undertaken as part of a more general programme to develop industrial clusters in India. Its subsequent research publications UNIDO 2000, 2001 reflect this treatment of ACs as just another example of industrial clustering. In this respect, the Indian and Thai examples highlighted in this chapter represent exceptions to, rather than examples of, the general trend. 26 This chapter is based on a contribution of Harry Hewlett, Volunteer, Agricultural Management, Marketing and Finance Service, FAO Rural Infrastructure and Agro-industries Division. 5.2 GAP CLUSTER IN THAILAND 5.2.1 The Western GAP Cluster and its context: some figures