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AbstractWe explore the sources of economic growth in Sri Lanka for the period during which it implemented a liberalized trade policy. We first calculate the primal and dual total factor productivity growth (TFPG), and then evaluate the roles of FDI and exports in driving TFPG. Results show that the average annual primal TFPG for 1980–2019 is 2.1%, constituting 43% of output growth. The corresponding dual TFPG is 3.3%. This divergence between primal and dual calculations is due to market imperfections, regulations, government monopolies, and issues in national accounts compilations. Regression results show that FDI has been a significant driver of Sri Lanka’s TFPG. Moreover, we find that both factor accumulation and TFPG are important sources of output growth. This is the first study that calculates dual TFPG for Sri Lanka. It provides policymakers the direction for implementing targeted policies to enhance Sri Lanka’s long-term growth prospects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent literature has been debating the performance of high-technology zones (HTZs) in developing countries. This paper contributes to this debate by examining how national HTZs in China affect allocative efficiency of resources among Chinese cities as well as China's total factor productivity (TFP) growth. This paper finds that resource misallocation among cities reduces China's TFP growth by 4.5% of which capital misallocation accounts for 2.4% and labour misallocation accounts for 2.1%. Moreover, we find that the establishment of national HTZs in China increases aggregate TFP by improving the allocative efficiency of capital among cities: that is, redistributing more capital from lower to higher productivity cities. In contrast, we find little evidence of TFP gain driven by technical efficiency following the establishment of HTZs. This paper thus reveals a potential positive effect of establishing HTZs in developing countries: although establishing HTZs may not improve the technical efficiency of these countries, it may nevertheless mitigate these countries' resource misallocation and enhance their aggregate TFP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the effect of misallocation induced by firm-specific distortions on aggregate productivity and long-run TFP growth. Using a new firm-level dataset from Sri Lanka's manufacturing surveys spanning over two decades and a standard model of misallocation, we show that when misallocation is eliminated, the aggregate manufacturing productivity could be boosted by 102% during 1994–2015. In addition, we find that the allocative efficiency exhibits a declining trend over time, and this rising misallocation could explain 55% of the manufacturing TFP growth slowdown in Sri Lanka. We further explore the underlying causes of the rising misallocation by quantitatively analysing the contributions of different types of firms and distortions in different markets. In the end, we qualitatively discuss potential fundamental sources in institutions and policies. Our results reveal that misallocation can be a mechanism underlying the growth slowdown of many emerging economies a decade after the liberalization reform since the late 1970s. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the effects of live-in foreign domestic workers (FDWs) on school children's educational outcomes using samples from two population censuses and a survey data set. The evidence consistently points to Filipino FDWs improving the educational outcomes of school children by decreasing their probability of late schooling or increasing their scores of core academic subjects. English-speaking ability and maturity are shown to be the most important assets of the Filipino FDW in improving children's educational outcomes. These findings suggest that FDWs provide an important childrearing service. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Presents information on a study which focused on the difference between the dual rate of technical change and the total productivity growth. Features of the integrated models used in the study on productivity growth; Results; Conclusion.