Over two decades, the globalisation of research and development (R&D) has become a subject of considerable academic interests. The majority of studies concerning it describe this phenomenon in developed countries. Little is known about it in technologically underdeveloped countries. No study has systematically identified the possible obstacles to the R&D globalisation process in these countries. This suggests that this research topic is a distinctive topic for study. This study takes Libya as an example of a technologically underdeveloped country and aims to investigate the obstacles to the R&D globalisation process in Libya. To achieve this aim and in fulfilling the research objectives, the thesis utilises both qualitative and quantitative approaches. They were conducted through case studies of two transnational corporations (TNCs) working in Libya and an interview-based survey with three R&D related managers located in their offices there. Additionally, a questionnaire-based survey was conducted on 30 R&D related managers at 10 Libyan organisations. These methods are complemented by an archival analysis of several sources, related to both TNCs selected and the Libyan business environment