Measuring agricultural total factor productivity for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations region

The agricultural sector remains to be one of the key growth engines of countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region, underlining the importance of strong and sustained agricultural growth as well as enhanced productivity of the sector which could play an instrumental role in contributing to development of the region. In this context, this paper examines agricultural productivity across eight ASEAN countries over the period 2000-2011. The paper contributes to the growing literature on productivity measurement pertaining to agricultural sector in the ASEAN region by empirically estimating agricultural total factor productivity (TFP) through a combination of growth accounting as well as non-parametric techniques such as the Malmquist index data envelopment analysis. The empirical results reveal that ASEAN countries as a group had an average TFP growth around 1.5% over the period of consideration (2000-2011). Individually, the findings show that Malaysia outperforming other countries in terms of TFP growth, with the CLMV countries consisting of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, being laggards. The results also show a significant scope for greater collaboration among the ASEAN bloc of countries which can in turn enhance inter-region learning on agricultural technology and resource management.