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Firm Productivity and Exports: Evidence from Ethiopian manufacturing

Author

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  • Bigsten, Arne

    (Department of Economics, School of Business, Economics and Law, University of Gothenburg)

  • Gebreeyesus, Mulu

    (Department of Economics, School of Business, Economics and Law, University of Gothenburg)

Abstract

This paper examines the causal relationship between exporting and productivity using a ten years long plant-level panel data set from an annual census of Ethiopian manufacturing, rarely available in the sub-Saharan Africa. We exploited its length to trace the trajectory of TFP and other productivity measures of groups of firms classified by their export history. We then tested learning-by-exporting using a one-step system-GMM approach with the export-status included directly in the production function. We addressed potential endogeneity problems by using instrumental variables, and also applied a matching analysis to address potential selection bias. We found strong evidence of not only self-selection but also learning-by-exporting. Depending on the specification previous exporting appears to have shifted the production function by 15-32 %. Exporters had on average three times more employees, and paid 1.6 times higher average wage than those of non-exporters.

Suggested Citation

  • Bigsten, Arne & Gebreeyesus, Mulu, 2008. "Firm Productivity and Exports: Evidence from Ethiopian manufacturing," Working Papers in Economics 303, University of Gothenburg, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:hhs:gunwpe:0303
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/2077/10037
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Productivity; exports; Ethiopia; manufacturing;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D21 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Firm Behavior: Theory
    • F14 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Empirical Studies of Trade
    • L60 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Manufacturing - - - General
    • O14 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Industrialization; Manufacturing and Service Industries; Choice of Technology

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