Assessing the impact of institutions on economic growth in the BRICS countries

Abstract

This study examines the impact of institutional quality on economic performance in the BRICS countries for the period from 2002 to 2019. The panel data study was estimated using pooled OLS and a fixed effect model. The study employed six institutional quality indicators (Worldwide Governance Indicators) which included voice and accountability, political stability and absence of violence/terrorism, government effectiveness, regulatory quality, rule of law, and control of corruption. The study also controlled for conventional sources of growth, i.e. human capital, physical capital, government expenditure, and inflation. All of these factors were positive and significant in our study. The findings also reveal that government effectiveness, regulatory quality and control of corruption had a positive and significant impact on economic growth in the BRICS countries, whereas other institutional variables turned out to be insignificant.