150 l REGIONAL INVESTMENT PIONEERS IN SOUTH ASIA
reputational bias of low quality that may persist from decades earlier. Business culture could also play a part in limiting information flows, for example, if the South Asian business community tended to be relatively more modest during times of success and more secretive during downturns. Similarly, the large presence of family firms and unlisted firms, for which the public release of information is not required, could lead to a cautious attitude toward information sharing. Also, the presence of large, diversified business groups may create incentives to keep information flows within the affiliates. SMALL BILATERAL NETWORKS AND FEW RELATIONSHIPS Figure 4.2 reports the results of survey questions that asked whether managers felt sufficiently well connected in each of the countries to readily pursue emerging business opportunities. The results were similar to those relating to knowledge connectivity, with an average score of 1.85 (between “not at all” and “not very well” connected).
FIGURE 4.2 Bilateral Network Connection Scores, by Destination
G BG D BT N IN D LK A M D V N PL PA K
Score Score
4 3 2 1 0
AF
AF
AF
f. Maldives
i. Sri Lanka
AF G BG D BT N IN D LK A M D V N PL PA K
h. Pakistan
AF G BG D BT N IN D LK A M D V N PL PA K
g. Nepal
AF
AF
AF
G BG D BT N IN D LK A M D V N PL PA K
G BG D BT N IN D LK A M D V N PL PA K
e. North Eastern Region of India
G BG D BT N IN D LK A M D V N PL PA K
d. India_General
AF G BG D BT N IN D LK A M D V N PL PA K
4 3 2 1 0
Score
4 3 2 1 0
c. Bhutan 4 3 2 1 0
G BG D BT N IN D LK A M D V N PL PA K
Score Score
4 3 2 1 0
Score
4 3 2 1 0
b. Bangladesh 4 3 2 1 0
G BG D BT N IN D LK A M D V N PL PA K
Score Score
4 3 2 1 0
Score
a. Afghanistan 4 3 2 1 0
How well informed do you feel with social and business network contacts to pursue transactions abroad? Source: South Asian Regional Engagement and Value Chains Survey. Note: Scores range from 1 (low) to 4 (high). Colored bars represent countries whose score is 1 standard deviation above (green) or below (orange) the home country mean. As an example, the Afghanistan frame presents each of the other South Asian economies’ perceptions of how well connected it is in Afghanistan. Scores are for bilateral pairs of countries with 30 or more observations. AFG = Afghanistan; BGD = Bangladesh; BTN = Bhutan; IND = India_General (India without North Eastern Region); LKA = Sri Lanka; MDV = Maldives; NPL = Nepal; PAK = Pakistan.