Interactive learning and firm-level capabilities in latecomer settings: The Nigerian manufacturing industry

Combining insight from strategic management, evolutionary economics and latecomer capability literatures, this paper analyses the relationship between interactive learning and capabilities in a sample of Nigerian manufacturing firms. A distinction is made between formal and informal modes of interactive learning. Results from multivariate probit estimations show that both modes are positively associated with firm-level capabilities but informal interactions dominate. These results have some implications for policy and practice. Firms may become more capable of innovating if they connect with externally-generated knowledge. However, the apparent difference in importance of formal and informal linkages suggests that the choice of how and when to form linkages is non-trivial. It also suggests the need for broad-based policies to nurture both types of linkages.