Export Orientation and Productivity in Sub-Saharan Africa
May 1, 2002
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Summary
Analysis of firm-level panel data from three sub-Saharan African economies shows that exporting manufacturers have a total factor productivity premium of 11-28 percent. The data do not allow testing of whether these premiums are caused by selection of more efficient producers into exporting or by learning-by-exporting. By thinking about the mechanisms behind selectivity and learning, however, our finding of higher premiums for direct exporters and exporters to outside Africa could be interpreted as being consistent with learning-by-exporting effects. However, if learning-by-exporting is indeed present in the data, we cannot disentangle its effect on productivity from those of more traditionally recognized channels of international technology diffusion.
Subject: Exports, Foreign aid, Imports, International trade, Labor, Production, Productivity, Total factor productivity
Keywords: Africa, direct exporter, Ethiopian firm, Exports, firm age, firms export, Imports, learning-by-exporting, productivity, productivity equation, productivity premium, Sub-Saharan Africa, Total factor productivity, WP
Pages:
30
Volume:
2002
DOI:
Issue:
089
Series:
Working Paper No. 2002/089
Stock No:
WPIEA0892002
ISBN:
9781451851298
ISSN:
1018-5941
