Productivity Changes in the Chinese Provincial Governments

Abstract

This paper applies a Data Envelope Analysis (DEA) method to the measurements and evaluations of Chinese provincial governmental productivity. It defines operationally the inputs and outputs of the government and governmental productivity in terms of eight indicators, and calculates the changes in governmental productivity with the DEA method for the period of 1985 to 2003. It decomposes the total factor productivity (TFP) into efficient changes and technical changes, and illustrates the characteristics of the changes in governmental productivity from periods to periods, and analyzes theoretically the characteristic patterns. It compares the differences in changes of governmental productivity among the different regions. In the processes of analysis, we emphasize the effects of administrative and economic reforms on governmental productivity, and the relationship between governmental productivity and administrative and economic reforms.