Downgrading by improvement?: The situation of Moroccan actors in trekking-tourism in the Atlas mountains

For many actors in developing countries the integration into a global value chain is the only possibility to gain access to western markets. The Moroccan actors quickly adapted to international standards and made the Atlas Mountains a well known destination for trekkers. This process of organizational learning however did not stick with the actors inside the chain, it spread over to other actors in the region and this at first seemed to be a desirable effect as it provoked regional development. But soon it turned out that it also increased competition and hence weakened the position of the Moroccan actors compared with the European lead firms who where well protected by efficient barriers to their activities. The paper argues that organizational learning does not necessarily lead to a process of upgrading when the market is restricted and no sufficient barriers to protect this knowledge are possible. Knowledge then will become a ubiquitous asset and the achieved enhancement on the regional scale will lead to entrepreneurial losses for the single actor