We use firm-level panel data for the manufacturing sector in four African countries to investigate whether exporting impacts on efficiency, and whether efficient firms self-select into the export market. Based on simultaneous estimation of a production function and an export regression, our preferred results indicate significant efficiency gains from exporting, which can be interpreted as learning by exporting. We show that modelling unobserved heterogeneity by a flexible approach is important for deriving this conclusion. A policy implication of our results is that Africa would gain from orientating its manufacturing sector towards exporting. © 2004 Taylor and Francis Ltd.
CITATION STYLE
Bigsten, A., Collier, P., Dercon, S., Fafchamps, M., Gauthier, B., Gunning, J. W., … Zeufack, A. (2004). Do African manufacturing firms learn from exporting? Journal of Development Studies, 40(3), 115–141. https://doi.org/10.1080/0022038042000213229
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