ABSTRACT
For countries of the Global South, global value chains offer an opportunity to integrate into international trade and to industrialise relatively easily. However, in this contribution, we argue that this is not sufficient for a catching-up development, i.e. to reach the GDP per capita levels of the countries of the Global North. On the contrary, there is a risk that countries will remain trapped in low value-added activities. The theoretical argument is supported by case studies of four industries in six countries. For catching-up, countries need comprehensive horizontal and vertical industrial policy.
