Skip to main content
Disciplines
Automotive Business IT + Informatics Construction + Real Estate Electrical Engineering + Electronics Energy + Sustainability Insurance + Risk Finance + Banking Management + Leadership Marketing + Sales Mechanical Engineering + Materials
Events
DE
EN
Books
Journals
Topic Page
Marketing
Start single access now
Access for companies
EXTENDED SEARCH
Log in
Top
Published in:
Introduction to Determinants of Economic Growth in Africa and Summary of the Contributions Read chapter Read first chapter

2018 | OriginalPaper | Chapter

9. Labour Productivity in Kenyan Manufacturing and Service Industries

Authors : Almas Heshmati, Masoomeh Rashidghalam

Published in: Determinants of Economic Growth in Africa

Publisher: Springer International Publishing

Log in

Activate our intelligent search to find suitable subject content or patents.

search-config
loading …

Abstract

Labour productivity reflects a firm’s ability to generate higher production or value-added. This paper analyses labour productivity and its determinants in the manufacturing and service sectors in Kenya. As the largest economy in East Africa, it is crucial for Kenya to have high labour productivity as it has strong implications for economic growth and welfare. The paper also provides practitioners with a better understanding of the state of labour productivity in the country. Using the World Bank’s Enterprise Survey’s database for 2013, we find that capital intensity and wage significantly and positively affected labour productivity. A higher female share in the labour force reduced labour productivity. We also found that training and education were associated with higher labour productivity. Reliance on technologies such as emails and websites for communication had a positive but insignificant impact on firms’ labour productivity. On the basis of these observations we make a number of recommendations to promote higher productivity of labour.

Dont have a licence yet? Then find out more about our products and how to get one now:

Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik"

Online-Abonnement

Mit Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik" erhalten Sie Zugriff auf:

  • über 102.000 Bücher
  • über 537 Zeitschriften

aus folgenden Fachgebieten:

  • Automobil + Motoren
  • Bauwesen + Immobilien
  • Business IT + Informatik
  • Elektrotechnik + Elektronik
  • Energie + Nachhaltigkeit
  • Finance + Banking
  • Management + Führung
  • Marketing + Vertrieb
  • Maschinenbau + Werkstoffe
  • Versicherung + Risiko

Jetzt Wissensvorsprung sichern!

inform now

Springer Professional "Wirtschaft"

Online-Abonnement

Mit Springer Professional "Wirtschaft" erhalten Sie Zugriff auf:

  • über 67.000 Bücher
  • über 340 Zeitschriften

aus folgenden Fachgebieten:

  • Bauwesen + Immobilien
  • Business IT + Informatik
  • Finance + Banking
  • Management + Führung
  • Marketing + Vertrieb
  • Versicherung + Risiko




Jetzt Wissensvorsprung sichern!

inform now
previous chapter Human Capital and Economic Growth in Developing Countries: Evidences from Low and Middle Income African Countries
next chapter Inferences on the Relationship Between Economic Growth and the Real Exchange Rate: A Meta-Analysis
Footnotes
3
US$1 = 99.7 Kenyan Shilling (KES) on 13 March 2016.
 
4
Measured as coefficient of variation, CV = Std Dev/Mean.
 
Literature
Amin, M. (2011). Labour Productivity, Firm-Size and Gender: The Case of Informal Firms in Argentina and Peru. Enterprise Note, 22. The World Bank.
Arnold, J., A. Mattoo, and G. Narciso (2006). Services Inputs and Firm Productivity in Sub-Saharan Africa: Evidence from Firm-Level Data. World Bank Policy Research Working Paper, No. 4048. Washington, DC: The World Bank.
Baptist, S. and F. Teal (2015). Technology and Productivity in African Manufacturing Firms. World Development, 64: 713–725.
Battese, G.E., A. Heshmati, and L. Hjalmarsson (2000). Efficiency of Labour Use in the Swedish Banking Industry: A Stochastic Frontier Approach. Empirical Economics 25(4): 623–640.
Dearden, L., H. Reed, and J.V. Reenen (2006). The Impact of Training on Productivity and Wages: Evidence from British Panel Data. Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, 68(4): 397–421.
Dethier, J., M. Hirn, and S. Straub (2010). Explaining Enterprise Performance in Developing Countries with Business Climate Survey Data. World Bank Research Observer, 26: 258–309.
Dollar, D., M. Hallword-Driemeier, and T. Mengistae (2005). Investment Climate and Firm Performance in Developing Countries. Economic Development and Cultural Change, 54(1): 1–31.
Eifert, B., A. Gelb, and V. Ramachandran (2008). The Cost of Doing Business in Africa: Evidence from Enterprise Survey Data. World Development, 36(9): 1531–1546.
Frazer, G. (2005). Which Firms Die? A Look at Manufacturing Firm Exit in Ghana. Economic Development and Cultural Change, 53(3): 585–617.
Heshmati, A. (2003). Productivity Growth, Efficiency and Outsourcing in Manufacturing and Services. Journal of Economic Surveys, 17(1): 79–112.
Heshmati, A. and B. Su (2014). Development and Sources of Labour Productivity in Chinese Provinces. China Economic Policy Review, 2(2): 1–30.
Kang, J.W., A. Heshmati, and G.G. Choi (2008). The Effects of Credit Guarantees on Survival and Performance of SMEs in Korea. Small Business Economics, 31(4): 445–462.
Kinda, T., P. Plane, and M. Veganzones-Veroudakis (2011). Firm Productivity and Investment Climate in Developing Countries: How Does the Middle East and North Africa Perform? The Developing Economies, 49(4): 429–469.
Masso, J. and A. Heshmati (2004). Optimality and Overuse of Labour in Estonian Manufacturing Enterprises. Economics of Transition, 12(4): 683–720.
Nagler, P. and W. Naudé (2014). Labour Productivity in Rural African Enterprises: Empirical Evidence from the LSMS-ISA. IZA Discussion Paper No. 2014: 8524.
Ogutu, S.O., J.J. Okello, and D.J. Otieno (2014). Impact of Information and Communication Technology-Based Market Information Services on Smallholder Farm Input Use and Productivity: The Case of Kenya. World Development, 64: 311–321.
Oh, I., A. Heshmati, C. Baek, and J.-D. Lee (2009). Comparative Analysis of Firm Dynamics by Size: The Korean Manufacturing. Japanese Economic Review, 60(4): 512–538.
Rijkers, B. and R. Costa (2012). Gender and Rural Non-farm Entrepreneurship. World Development, 40(12): 2411–2426.
Rijkers, B., M. Söderbom, and J. Loening (2010). A Rural-Urban Comparison of Manufacturing Enterprise Performance in Ethiopia. World Development, 38(9): 1278–1296.
Sala, H. and J.I. Silva (2011). Labour Productivity and Vocational Training: Evidence from Europe. IZA Discussion Paper No. 2011: 6171.
Saliola, F. and M. Seker (2011). Total Factor Productivity Across the Developing World. Enterprise Note No. 23. The World Bank.
Sauiana, M.S., N. Kamarudinb, and R.M. Rani (2013). Labour Productivity of Services Sector in Malaysia: Analysis Using Input-Output Approach. Procedia Economics and Finance, 7: 35–41.
Söderbom, M. and F. Teal (2004). Size and Efficiency in African Manufacturing Firms: Evidence from Firm-Level Panel Data. Journal of Development Economics, 73(1): 369–394.
Söderbom, M., F. Teal, and A. Harding (2006). The Determinants of Survival Among African Manufacturing Firms. Economic Development and Cultural Change, 54(3): 533–555.
Wei, Y.H. (2000). Investment and Regional Development in Post-Mao China. Geo Journal, 51(3): 169–179.
Xiaodong, L., K.H. Chow, Y. Zhu, and L. Ying (2016). Evaluating the Impacts of High-Temperature Outdoor Working Environments on Construction Labour Productivity in China: A Case Study of Rebar Workers. Building and Environment, 95: 42–52.
Metadata
Title
Labour Productivity in Kenyan Manufacturing and Service Industries
Authors
Almas Heshmati
Masoomeh Rashidghalam
Copyright Year
2018
Book
Determinants of Economic Growth in Africa

Print ISBN: 978-3-319-76492-4

Electronic ISBN: 978-3-319-76493-1

Copyright Year: 2018

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-76493-1_9