prof.dr. P (Peter) Knorringa

Biography

Peter Knorringa is a Professor of Private Sector & Development at the International Institute of Social Studies (ISS) at Erasmus University Rotterdam. His Chair focuses on the diverse roles and impacts of business on development. He does not perceive private firms as either the ‘enemy’ or the ‘heroic deliverer’ of development. Instead, he aims to advance a more empirical and nuanced debate on where and when entrepreneurs and firms are more likely to contribute to achieving more inclusive and sustainable development.

Since 2013, Professor Knorringa is the academic director of the Centre for Frugal Innovation in Africa (CFIA), a multi-disciplinary research centre that is part of the strategic alliance between Leiden University, Delft University of Technology and the Erasmus University Rotterdam in the Netherlands.

His present research explores the developmental impacts of frugal innovations, and builds on his previous research on clustered small and medium scale enterprises, the role of trust, networks and social capital in value chain analysis, and the role of sustainability standards.  

Most of his research experience is in India and Vietnam, and he has also worked in Brazil, China, Costa Rica, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Kenya, Nepal, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda and Russia.