Technology, Development, and Hemispheric Free Trade

Technology and its transfer take many forms, a fact that contributes to the difficulty of accounting for them in international trade agreements. This situation has been rendered even more complex by dramatic changes taking place in the organization of global manufacturing, the so-called Third Industrial Revolution, which itself rests on advances in telecommunications and informatics. Too much attention in Latin America has been directed toward expensive high-technology and turnkey operations and not enough on infrastructure and softer, but ultimately more important, questions of operational technology. Much of the success that Latin American and Caribbean countries can expect to enjoy under liberalized trade depends on each nation's ability to find niches and to promote quality, efficiency, and flexibility in domestic manufacturing.