Structural Reforms and Labor Productivity Growth in Developing Countries

This paper employs sectoral data to draw conclusions on how structural reforms—implemented during the period 1975–2005—affected differences in cross-country aggregate labor productivity growth in developing countries. Most important, it explores how the effects of reforms on productivity growth are distributed between the intrasectoral and intersectoral components of labor productivity growth. The findings indicate that most of the trade, product market, and financial sector reforms have increased productivity growth. Looking at the subcomponents of labor productivity growth, the results show that structural reforms work mainly through the intra-allocative efficiency channel but not through the interallocative efficiency channel. The intrasectoral component is the main driver of the impacts of reforms on productivity growth, with a contribution that ranges from 76 percent to 96 percent depending on the reform measure considered. The paper also examines the role of labor market regulations and finds that labor market rigidity/flexibility matters for how specific reforms induce reallocation of resources within and across sectors.