ECONOMIC GROWTH: A DATA ENVELOPMENT ANALYSIS

Somesh K. Mathur

Authors

Somesh K. Mathur

Keywords:

capital accumulation, counterfactual distributions, cross-country labour productivity distribution, data envelopment analysis, efficiency change, growth accounting, human capital accumulation, kernel smoothing, technical efficiency, technological change

Abstract

We estimate technical efficiency levels for 29 countries including some selected South Asian, East Asian and EU countries by means of data envelopment analysis. Luxembourg has an efficiency score of one (most efficient) in all the years analyzed. The Netherlands also have an efficiency score of one in 1966, 1971, 1976, and 1981. Japan, UK, Belgium, Ireland, Indonesia, Spain, and Germany have an efficiency score of one in at least one of the years from 1966 to 2000. In the year 2000 though, mean efficiency levels (excluding life expectancy as input) of South Asian countries are higher than those of the European countries (EU 15 + Norway) and East Asian countries. In 1966-2000, Japan has the highest average efficiency followed by Hong Kong in the East Asian region.

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