the.world.is.flat-第64章

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contracts　only　for　specific　jobs；　and　set　their　duration　to　be　at　most　one　year　。。。　
A　simple　commercial　contract　is　enforced　in　seven　days　in　Tunisia　and　thirty…nine　
days　in　the　Netherlands；　but　takes　almost　1；500　days　in　Guatemala。　The　cost　of　
enforcement　is　less　than　1　percent　of　the　disputed　amount　in　Austria；　Canada　and　the　
United　Kingdom；　but　more　than　100　percent　in　Burkina　Faso；　the　Dominican　Republic；　
Indonesia　。　。。　and　the　Philippines。　Credit　bureaus　contain　credit　histories　on　almost　
every　adult　in　New　Zealand；　Norway　and　the　United　States。　But　the　credit　registries　
in　Cameroon；　Ghana；　Pakistan；　Nigeria　and　Serbia　and　Montenegro　have　credit　histories　
for　less　than　1　percent　of　adults。　In　the　United　Kingdom；　laws　on　collateral　and　
bankruptcy　give　creditors　strong　powers　to　recover　their　money　if　a　debtor　defaults。　
In　Colombia；　the　Republic　of　Congo；　Mexico；　Oman　and　Tunisia；　a　creditor　has　no　such　
rights。　It　takes　less　than　six　months　to　go　through　bankruptcy　proceedings　in　Ireland　
and　Japan；　but　more　than　ten　years　in　Brazil　and　India。　It　costs　less　than　1　percent　
of　the　value　of　the　estate　to　resolve　insolvency　in　Finland；　the　Netherlands；　Norway　


and　Singapore…and　nearly　half　
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the　estate　value　in　Chad；　Panama；　Macedonia；　Venezuela；　Serbia　and　Montenegro；　and　
Sierra　Leone。〃　
As　the　IFC　report　notes；　excessive　regulation　also　tends　to　hurt　most　the　very　people　
it　is　supposed　to　protect。　The　rich　and　the　well　connected　just　buy　or　hustle　their　
way　around　onerous　regulations。　In　countries　that　have　very　regulated　labor　markets　
where　it　is　difficult　to　hire　and　fire　people；　women；　especially；　have　a　hard　time　
finding　employment。　
〃Good　regulation　does　not　mean　zero　regulation；〃　concludes　the　IFC　study。　〃The　optimal　
level　of　regulation　is　not　none；　but　may　be　less　than　what　is　currently　found　in　most　
countries；　and　especially　poor　ones。〃　It　offers　what　I　call　a　five…step　checklist　
for　reform　retail。　One；　simplify　and　deregulate　wherever　possible　in　competitive　
markets；　because　competition　for　consumers　and　workers　can　be　the　best　source　of　
pressure　for　best　practices；　and　overregulation　just　opens　the　door　for　corrupt　
bureaucrats　to　demand　bribes。　〃There　is　no　reason　for　Angola　to　have　one　of　the　most　
rigid　employment　laws　if　Portugal；　whose　laws　Angola　adapted；　has　already　revised　
them　twice　to　make　the　labor　market　more　flexible；〃　says　the　IFC　study。　Two；　focus　
on　enhancing　property　rights。　Under　de　Soto's　initiative；　the　Peruvian　government　
in　the　last　decade　has　issued　property　titles　to　1。2　million　urban　squatter　households。　
〃Secure　property　rights　have　enabled　parents　to　leave　their　homes　and　find　jobs　
instead　of　staying　in　to　protect　the　property；〃　says　the　IFC　study。　〃The　main　
beneficiaries　are　their　children；　who　can　now　go　to　school。〃　Three；　expand　the　use　
of　the　Internet　for　regulation　fulfillment。　It　makes　it　faster；　more　transparent；　
and　far　less　open　to　bribery。　Four；　reduce　court　involvement　in　business　matters。　
And　last　but　certainly　not　least；　advises　the　IFC　study；　〃Make　reform　a　continuous　
process　。　。　。　Countries　that　consistently　perform　well　across　the　Doing　Business　
indicators　do　so　because　of　continuous　reform。〃　
In　addition　to　the　IFC's　criteria；　reform　retail　obviously　has　to　include　expanding　
the　opportunities　for　your　population　to　get　an　education　at　all　levels　and　investing　
in　the　logistical　infrastructure…roads；　ports；　telecommunications；　and　
airports…without　which　no　reform　retail　can　take　off　and　collaboration　with　others　
is　impossible。　Many　countries　today　still　have　telecommunications　systems　dominated　
by　state　
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monopolies　that　make　it　either　too　expensive　or　too　slow　to　get　highspeed　Internet　
access　and　wireless　access；　and　to　make　cheap　longdistance　and　overseas　phone　calls。　
Without　reform　retail　in　your　telecom　sector；　reform　retail　in　the　other　five　areas；　
while　necessary；　will　not　be　sufficient。　What　is　striking　about　the　IFC's　criteria　
is　that　a　lot　of　people　think　they　are　relevant　only　for　Peru　and　Argentina；　but　in　
fact　some　of　the　countries　that　score　worst　are　places　like　Germany　and　Italy。　（Indeed；　
the　German　government　protested　some　of　the　findings。）　
〃When　you　and　I　were　born；〃　said　Luis　de　la　Calle；　〃our　competition　＇was＇　our　next…door　
neighbors。　Today　our　competition　is　a　Japanese　or　a　Frenchman　or　a　Chinese。　You　know　


where　you　rank　very　quickly　in　a　flat　world　。　。　。　You　are　now　competing　with　everyone　
else。〃　The　best　talent　in　a　flat　world　will　earn　more；　he　added；　〃and　if　you　don't　
measure　up；　someone　will　replace　you…and　it　will　not　be　the　guy　across　the　street。〃　
If　you　don't　agree；　just　ask　some　of　the　major　players。　Craig　Barrett；　the　chairman　
of　Intel；　said　to　me；　〃With　very　few　exceptions；　when　you　would　think　about　where　
to　site　a　manufacturing　plant；　you　would　think　about　the　cost　of　labor；　transportation；　
and　availability　of　utilities…that　sort　of　stuff。　The　discussion　has　been　expanded　
today；　and　so　it　is　no　longer　where　you　put　your　plant　but　now　where　do　you　put　your　
engineering　resources；　your　research　and　development…where　are　the　most　efficient　
intellectual　and　other　resources　relative　to　cost？　You　now　have　the　freedom　to　make　
that　choice　。。。　Today　we　can　be　anywhere。　Anywhere　could　be　part　of　my　supply　chain　
now…Brazil；　Vietnam；　the　Czech　Republic；　Ukraine。　Many　of　us　are　limiting　our　scope　
today　to　a　couple　of　countries　for　a　very　simple　reason：　Some　can　combine　the　
availability　of　talent　and　a　market…that　is；　India；　Russia；　and　China。〃　But　for　every　
country　Intel　considers　going　into；　added　Barrett；　he　asks　himself　the　same　question：　
〃What　inherent　strength　does　＇the＇　country　bring　to　the　party？　India；　Russia…crummy　
infrastructure；　good　educational　level；　you　have　a　bunch　of　smart　folks。　China　has　
a　little　bit　of　everything。　China　has　good　infrastructure；　better　than　Russia　or　India。　
So　if　you　go　to　Egypt；　what　unique　capability　＇does　that　country　have　to　offer＇？　
Exceedingly　low　labor　rates；　but　what　is　＇the＇　infrastructure　and　education　base？　
The　Philippines　or　Malaysia　have　good　literacy　rates…you　get　

to　employ　college　grads　in　your　manufacturing　line。　They　did　not　have　infrastructure；　
but　they　had　a　pool　of　educated　people。　You　have　got　to　have　something　to　build　on。　
When　we　go　to　India　and　are　asked　about　opening　plants；　we　say；　'You　don't　have　
infrastructure。　Your　electricity　goes　off　four　times　a　day。'〃　
Added　John　Chambers；　the　CEO　of　Cisco　Systems；　which　uses　a　global　supply　chain　to　
build　the　routers　that　run　the　Internet　and　is　constantly　being　wooed　to　invest　in　
one　country　or　another；　〃The　jobs　are　going　to　go　where　the　best…educated　workforce　
is　with　the　most　competitive　infrastructure　and　environment　for　creativity　and　
supportive　government。　It　is　inevitable。　And　by　definition　those　people　will　have　
the　best　standard　ofliving。　This　may　or　may　not　be　the　countries　who　led　the　Industrial　
Revolution。〃　
But　while　the　stakes　in　reform　retail　today　are　higher　than　ever；　and　countries　know　
it；　one　need　only　look　around　the　world　to　notice　that　not　every　country　can　pull　
it　off。　Unlike　reform　wholesale；　which　could　be　done　by　a　handful　of　people　using　
administrative　orders　or　just　authoritarian　dictates；　reform　retail　requires　a　much　
wider　base　of　public　and　parliamentary　buy…in　if　it　is　going　to　overcome　vested　
economic　and　political　interests。　
In　Mexico；　〃we　did　the　first　stages　of　structural　reform　from　the　top　down；〃　said　
Guillermo　Ortiz。　〃The　next　stage　is　much　more　difficult。　You　have　to　work　from　the　
bottom　up。　You　have　to　create　the　wider　consensus　to　push　the　reforms　in　a　democratic　
context。〃　And　once　that　happens；　noted　Moises　Nairn；　a　former　Economy　Minister　of　
Venezuela　and　now　editor　of　Foreign　Policy　magazine；　you　have　a　much　larger　number　


of　actors　participating；　making　the　internal　logic　and　technical　consistency　of　the　
reform　policies　much　more　vulnerable　to　the　impact　of　political　compromises；　
contradictions；　and　institutional　failures。　〃Bypassing　or　ignoring　the　entrenched　
and　defensive　public　bureaucracy…a　luxury　frequently　enjoyed　by　the　government　teams　
that　launch　initial　reform　measures…is　more　difficult　in　this　stage；〃　Nairn　said。　
So　why　does　one　country　get　over　this　reform　retail　hump；　with　leaders　able　to　mobilize　
the　bureaucracy　and　the　public　behind　these　more　painful；　more　exacting　micro…reforms；　
and　another　country　get　tripped　up？　
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Culture　Matters：　Glocalization　
One　answer　is　culture。　To　reduce　a　country's　economic　performance　to　culture　alone　
is　ridiculous；　but　to　analyze　a　country's　economic　performance　without　reference　to　
culture　is　equally　ridiculous；　although　that　is　what　many　economists　and　political　
scientists　want　to　do。　This　subject　is　highly　controversial　and　is　viewed　as　
politically　incorrect　to　introduce。　So　it　is　often　the　elephant　in　the　room　that　no　
one　wants　to　speak　about。　But　I　am　going　to　speak　about　it　here；　for　a　very　simple　
reason：　As　the　world　goes　flat；　and　more　and　more　of　the　tools　of　collaboration　get　
distributed　and　com…moditized；　the　gap　between　cultures　that　have　the　will；　the　way；　
and　the　focus　to　quickly　adopt　these　new　tools　and　apply　them　and　those　that　do　not　
will　matter　more。　The　differences　between　the　two　will　become　amplified。　
One　of　the　most　important　books　on　this　subject　is　The　Wealth　and　Poverty　of　Nations　
by　the　economist　David　Landes。　He　argues　that　although　climate；　natural　resources；　
and　geography　all　play　roles　in　explaining　why　some　countries　are　able　to　make　the　
leap　to　industrialization　and　others　are　not；　the　key　factor　is　actually　a　country's　
cultural　endowments；　particularly　the　degree　to　which　it　has　internalized　the　values　
of　hard　work；　thrift；　honesty；　patience；　and　tenacity；　as　well　as　the　degree　to　which　
it　is　open　to　change；　new　technology；　and　equality　for　women。　One　can　agree　or　disagree　
with　the　balance　Landes　strikes　between　these　cultural　mores　and　other　factors　shaping　
economic　performance。　But　I　find　refreshing　his　insistence　on　elevating　the　culture　
question；　and　his　refusal　to　buy　into　arguments　that　the　continued　stagnation　of　some　
countries　is　simply　about　Western　colonialism；　geography；　or　historical　legacy。　
In　my　own　travels；　two　aspects　of　culture　have　struck　me　as　particularly　relevant　
in　the　flat　world。　One　is　how　outward　your　culture　is：　To　what　degree　is　it　open　to　
foreign　influences　and　ideas？　How　well　does　it　〃glocalize〃？　The　other；　more　intangible；　
is　how　inward　your　culture　is。　By　that　I　mean；　to　what　degree　is　there　a　sense　of　
national　solidarity　and　a　focus　on　development；　to　what　degree　is　there　trust　within　
the　society　
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for　strangers　to　collaborate　together；　and　to　what　degree　are　the　elites　in　the　country　
concerned　with　the　masses　and　ready　to　invest　at　home；　or　are　they　indifferent　to　
their　own　poor　and　more　interested　in　investing　abroad？　
The　more　you　have　a　culture　that　naturally　glocalizes…that　is；　the　more　your　culture　
easily　absorbs　foreign　ideas　and　best　practices　and　melds　those　with　its　own　
traditions…the　greater　advantage　you　will　hav