University of Twente Student Theses
Assessing domestic policy instruments in the global division of labour : How can the German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (LkSG) improve the unequal participation in the global division of labour and promote sustainable development in a capitalistic system?
Schürmann, Marie (2023) Assessing domestic policy instruments in the global division of labour : How can the German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (LkSG) improve the unequal participation in the global division of labour and promote sustainable development in a capitalistic system?
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| Abstract: | This paper explores the potential of the German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (LkSG) to improve the unequal participation of countries in the Global South in global value chains. The focus is on social and environmental aspects, while acknowledging the limits of comprehensive sustainable development within the current capitalist economic system. Using the theoretical approach of political economy, dependency and world systems theory, the paper balances the unequal participation in the global division of labour that goes back to post-colonial dependencies and persists in the current world economic system. Through the fragmentation of global production networks and production locations along the value chain, multinational corporations (MNCs) can further expand their growing influence and profit from the structural disadvantage of countries in the global South. In an increasingly decoupled neoliberal market, MNCs use their influence and the economic interests of the state to prevent regulation in the form of legally anchored corporate due diligence. Global governance also fails to find a satisfactory answer due to the lack of a central governance actor and the increasing erosion of the nation state. In the context of a globalized world, the paper identifies a regulatory gap that can be partially closed by legally anchoring corporate due diligence in global value chains. The research questions explore how the LkSG can mitigate postcolonial dependencies and inequalities in supply chains, enhance equitable participation in international trade and promote sustainability in line with the Sustainable Development Goals. Based on a combination of literature and self-conducted expert interviews, the paper analyses the LkSG as a step towards a more equitable global division of labour and sustainable development and emphasises the need for further improvements and an extension of its scope to the European level. By analysing the impact and effectiveness of the LkSG, this paper contributes to the discourse on international trade, corporate responsibility, and the pursuit of a more equitable global economic landscape. |
| Item Type: | Essay (Master) |
| Faculty: | BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences |
| Subject: | 70 social sciences in general, 71 sociology, 83 economics, 88 social and public administration, 89 political science |
| Programme: | European Studies MSc (69303) |
| Link to this item: | https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/97280 |
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