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Misallocation, Property Rights, and Access to Finance: Evidence from within and across Africa

In: African Successes, Volume III: Modernization and Development

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  • Sebnem Kalemli-Ozcan
  • Bent E. Sørensen

Abstract

We study capital misallocation within and across 10 African countries using the World Bank Enterprise Surveys. First, we compare the extent of misallocation among firms within countries. We document high variation in firms' marginal product of capital (MPK), implying that countries could produce significantly more with the same aggregate capital stock if capital were allocated optimally. Such variation differs from country to country with some African countries (success stories) closer to developed country benchmarks. Small firms and non-exporters have less access to finance and have higher returns to capital in general. Self reported measures of obstacles to firms' operations suggest access to finance is the most important obstacle: A firm with the worst access to finance has MPK 45 percent higher than a firm with the worst access to finance as a result of low capital per worker. We compare average levels of the MPK across countries, finding evidence that the strength of property rights and the quality of the legal system help explain country-level differences in capital misallocation.
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  • Sebnem Kalemli-Ozcan & Bent E. Sørensen, 2014. "Misallocation, Property Rights, and Access to Finance: Evidence from within and across Africa," NBER Chapters, in: African Successes, Volume III: Modernization and Development, pages 183-211, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberch:13360
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    Cited by:

    1. Natalie Bau & Adrien Matray, 2020. "Misallocation and Capital Market Integration: Evidence from India," Working Papers 2020-31, Princeton University. Economics Department..
    2. Diego Restuccia, 2013. "factor misallocation and development," The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics,, Palgrave Macmillan.
    3. Matray, Adrien, 2020. "Misallocation and Capital Market Integration: Evidence From India," CEPR Discussion Papers 14282, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    4. Ranasinghe, Ashantha, 2024. "Gender specific distortions, entrepreneurship and misallocation," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 162(C).
    5. Diego Restuccia & Richard Rogerson, 2017. "The Causes and Costs of Misallocation," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 31(3), pages 151-174, Summer.
    6. Douglas Gollin & Christopher Udry, 2021. "Heterogeneity, Measurement Error, and Misallocation: Evidence from African Agriculture," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 129(1), pages 1-80.
    7. Liliana Varela, 2018. "Reallocation, Competition, and Productivity: Evidence from a Financial Liberalization Episode," Review of Economic Studies, Oxford University Press, vol. 85(2), pages 1279-1313.
    8. Henderson, J. Vernon & Roberts, Mark & Storeygard, Adam, 2013. "Is urbanization in Sub-Saharan Africa different ?," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6481, The World Bank.
    9. Yuriy Gorodnichenko & Debora Revoltella & Jan Svejnar & Christoph T. Weiss, 2018. "Resource Misallocation in European Firms: The Role of Constraints, Firm Characteristics and Managerial Decisions," NBER Working Papers 24444, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    10. Barbiero, Francesca & Popov, Alexander & Wolski, Marcin, 2018. "Debt overhang and investment efficiency," EIB Working Papers 2018/08, European Investment Bank (EIB).
    11. Oguzoglu Umut & Ranasinghe Ashantha, 2017. "Crime and Establishment Size: Evidence from South America," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 17(4), pages 1-17, October.
    12. Martin Rotemberg & T. Kirk White, 2016. "Measuring Cross-Country Differences in Misallocation," Working Papers 16-50, Center for Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau.
    13. Sujana Kabiraj, 2020. "Analyzing the Sources of Misallocation in Indian Manufacturing: A Gross-Output Approach," Asian Development Review, MIT Press, vol. 37(2), pages 134-166, September.
    14. Leon-Ledesma, Miguel, 2016. "Potential Growth, Misallocation, and Institutional Obstacles: Firm-Level Evidence," ADB Economics Working Paper Series 480, Asian Development Bank.
    15. Natalie Bau & Adrien Matray, 2020. "Misallocation and Capital Market Integration: Evidence from India," Working Papers 263, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Center for Economic Policy Studies..
    16. Diego Restuccia & Richard Rogerson, 2013. "Misallocation and productivity," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 16(1), pages 1-10, January.
    17. Cao, Wenbin & Duan, Xiaoman & Niu, Xu, 2023. "Access to finance, bureaucracy, and capital allocation efficiency," Journal of Economics and Business, Elsevier, vol. 125.
    18. Ija Trapeznikova & Juan Pablo Rud, 2015. "Wage Dispersion, Job Creation and Development: Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa," 2015 Meeting Papers 1005, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    19. Zhang, Shangfeng & Chen, Congcong & Xu, Siwa & Xu, Bing, 2021. "Measurement of capital allocation efficiency in emerging economies: evidence from China," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 171(C).
    20. Miguel A. León-Ledesma & Dimitris Christopoulos, 2016. "Misallocation, Access to Finance, and Public Credit: Firm-Level Evidence," Asian Development Review, MIT Press, vol. 33(2), pages 119-143, September.
    21. Ranasinghe, Ashantha, 2024. "Misallocation across establishment gender," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 52(1), pages 183-206.
    22. Zheng Li & Jorge Martinez-Vazquez, 2018. "Fiscal Decentralization and Interregional Capital Misallocation: Evidence from China," International Center for Public Policy Working Paper Series, at AYSPS, GSU paper1816, International Center for Public Policy, Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, Georgia State University.
    23. Theresa Chaudhry & Muhammad Haseeb & Maryiam Haroon, 2017. "Economic geography and misallocation in Pakistan’s manufacturing hub," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 59(1), pages 189-208, July.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • F40 - International Economics - - Macroeconomic Aspects of International Trade and Finance - - - General
    • O10 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - General

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