National Competitive Advantage through the LPRM – A Human Resources Lens

Porter stipulates that human resources i.e. the local labour force and supply of skilled labor, are key components to developing an investment-driven national competitive advantage. Similarly, Behre Dolbear considers this a key component to a country “economic system,” which the firm categorizes within the most important factor as listed, toward attracting mining FDI.

The lack of a skilled workforce in supporting industries is a bottle-neck to productivity in Brazil; “regularly highlighted as a recurrent challenge faced by mining firms.”25 The “average educational attainment in Brazil is 7.2 years, which ranks quite low compared to other economies at similar levels of development.” Challenges related to the quality of public education, equity and the level of resources invested in the education system and ultimately, the lack of a workforce, with industry-relevant skills and education, are a clear barrier to developing investment-driven mining NCA.

LPRM-generated mine-site-level data enables host governments to, “tailor their education programs so that they help develop the skills required for the creation of particular goods and services.”27 In the case of Australia, the government develops data-driven “policies to foster the sector” “by ensuring alignment of its education system with the demands of the industry through public-private partnerships.”

Sources:

  • Korinek J, 2014, Local Content Policies in Minerals-exporting countries, Case Studies, Working Party of the Trade Committee, TAD/TC/WP(2016)3/PART2/FINAL.
  • Geipel J, Nickerson E, Kietly J, Regenstrief T, 2017, Mining Local Procurement Reporting Mechanism, German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development & Engineers Without Borders Canada.
  • Porter M, The Competitive Advantage of Nations, Harvard Business Review, March-April 1990, pp. 74-91.
  • Behre Dolbear, 2014, Ranking of Countries for Mining Investment: Where Not to Invest.

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