Research

Journal publications

“Imported Inputs and Firm Productivity: Does Foreign Ownership Matter?” with Eyayu Tesfaye Mulugeta. Forthcoming in International Economics and Economic Policy.

“The Effect of Firm Absorptive Capacity on Learning by Importing: Mediation Role of Industry Policy-Induced Intermediate Input Import,” (with Moges Tufa). Forthcoming in International Journal of Business Forecasting and Marketing Intelligence.

“The Impact of Sector-Specific Industrial Policy on Manufacturing Firm Performance: Quasi-Experimental Evidence from Ethiopia Chemical Industries,” 2023, Journal of Industry, Competition and Trade 23, pp. 363-397 (with Moges Tufa and Zerahehu Sime).

“Worker Turnover and Job Reallocation: Evidence from Matched Employer-Employee Data,” 2023, Economic Development and Cultural Change 71(4), pp. 1249-1277 (with Admasu Shiferaw). Online Appendix.

"Social Insurance Reform and Workers' Compensation,” 2022, Labor Economics 78, Article 102214 (with Arjun Bedi, Admasu Shiferaw and Getnet Alemu).

“Adoption with Social Learning and Network Externalities,” 2022, Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics 84(6), pp. 1259-1282 (with Marcel Fafchamps and Monique van den Boogaart). Online Appendix.

“The Effects of Storage Technology and Training on Post-Harvest Losses, Practices and Sales: Evidence from Small-Scale Farms in Tanzania,” 2022, Economic Development and Cultural Change 70(2), pp. 729-761 (with Martin Julius Chegere and Håkan Eggert). Replication data: https://dataverse.harvard.edu/dataset.xhtml?persistentId=doi:10.7910/DVN/RGUSWE.

“The relationship among enterprise clustering, prices, and productivity in Ethiopia’s manufacturing sector,” 2020, Review of Development Economics 24, pp. 831-854 (with Eyerusalem Siba, Arne Bigsten and Mulu Gebreeyesus).

“Linked-in by FDI: The Role of Firm-Level Relationships for Knowledge Transfers in Africa and Asia,” 2020, Journal of Development Studies 56(3), pp. 451-468 (with Carol Newman, John Page, John Rand, Abebe Shimeles and Finn Tarp). This article is open access.

“Is R&D cash flow sensitive? Evidence from Chinese industrial firms,” 2018, China Economic Review 47, pp. 77-95 (with Qian Weng).

“GMM estimation of panel data models with time varying slope coefficients,” 2017, Applied Economics Letters 24(21), pp. 1511-1518 (with Yoshihiro Sato).

"Tariffs and Firm Performance in Ethiopia ," 2016, Journal of Development Studies 52(7), pp. 986-1001 (with Arne Bigsten and Mulu Gebreeyesus).Online appendix available here.

"The Cost of Road Infrastructure in Developing Countries ," 2015, World Bank Economic Review; doi: 10.1093/wber/lhv037 (with Paul Collier and Martina Kirchberger). Supplemental appendix here.

"Road Infrastructure and Enterprise Dynamics in Ethiopia ," 2015, Journal of Development Studies 51(11), pp. 1541-1558 (with Admasu Shiferaw, Eyerusalem Siba and Getnet Alemu).

"Is Small Beautiful? Small Enterprise, Aid and Employment in Africa ," 2015, African Development Review (supplement: Special Issue on 'Aid and Development') 27(S1), pp. 44-55 (with John Page).

"Network Proximity and Business Practices in African Manufacturing ," 2014, World Bank Economic Review 28(1), 99-129 (with Marcel Fafchamps). Online appendix available here. An previous (longer) version of the paper is available here .

"The effects of risk and shocks on non-farm enterprise development in rural Ethiopia," 2013, World Development 45, 119-136 (with Bob Rijkers).

"Conditional Investment-Cash Flow Sensitivities and Financing Constraints," Journal of the European Economic Association, Issue 1, February 2013 (with Steve Bond). Online appendix here . An earlier version (from 2009) of the paper can be obtained here. An even earlier version of the paper (from 2006) can be obtained here.

"Multi-product firms, product mix changes and upgrading: Evidence from China's state-owned forest areas ," 2012, China Economic Review 23, 801-818 (with Qian Weng).

" Firm Size and Structural Change: A Case Study of Ethiopia ," 2012, Journal of African Economies (AERC Supplement 2), 21, ii126-ii151. 

"Household-Level Consumption in Urban Ethiopia: The Effects of a Large Food Price Shock ," 2012, World Development 40, 146-162 (with Yonas Alem).

"Industrial Strategies for Economic Recovery and Long-term Growth in Africa ," 2011, African Development Review 23:2, pp. 161-171 (with Arne Bigsten).

"Pursuing the Wrong Options? Adjustment Costs and the Relationship between Uncertainty and Capital Accumulation ," 2011, Economics Letters 11, pp. 249-251 (with Steve Bond and Guiying Wu) . Online Appendix available here."

African firms in the global economy ," 2010, Review of Market Integration 2, pp.229-253 (with Arne Bigsten). 

"A Rural Urban Comparison of Manufacturing Enterprise Performance in Ethiopia ," 2010, World Development 38:9, pp.1278-1296 (with Bob Rijkers and Josef Loening).

"Job Sorting in African Labor Markets," 2009, Journal of African Economies 18, pp. 824-868 (with Marcel Fafchamps and Najy Benhassine).

"Post-Conflict Risks," 2008, Journal of Peace Research 45:4, pp. 461-478 (with Paul Collier and Anke Hoeffler).

"Exporting from Manufacturing Firms in Sub-Saharan Africa," 2006, Journal of African Economies 15:4, pp.671-687 (with Neil Rankin and Francis Teal).

"What Have We Learned from a Decade of Manufacturing Enterprise Surveys in Africa?" 2006, World Bank Research Observer 21:2, pp. 241-265 (with Arne Bigsten).

"The Dynamics of Returns to Education in Kenyan and Tanzanian Manufacturing," 2006, Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics 68:3, pp. 261-288 (with Francis Teal, Anthony Wambugu and Godius Kahyarara).

"Wages and Labor Management in African Manufacturing," 2006, Journal of Human Resources 41:2, pp. 346-379 (with Marcel Fafchamps). 

"The Determinants of Survival Among African Manufacturing Firms," 2006, Economic Development and Cultural Change 54:3, pp. 533-556 (with Alan Harding and Francis Teal).

"Adjustment Costs, Irreversibility and Investment Patterns in African Manufacturing," 2005, The B.E. Journals in Economic Analysis & Policy: Contributions to Economic Analysis & Policy 4:1 Article 12, pp. 1-27 (with Arne Bigsten, Paul Collier, Stefan Dercon, Marcel Fafchamps, Bernard Gauthier, Jan Willem Gunning, Remco Oostendorp, Catherine Pattillo and Francis Teal).

"Unobserved Heterogeneity and the Relation between Earnings and Firm Size: Evidence from Two Developing Countries," 2005, Economics Letters 87, pp. 153-159 (with Francis Teal and Anthony Wambugu).

"Size and Efficiency in African Manufacturing Firms: Evidence from Firm-Level Panel Data," 2004, Journal of Development Economics 73, pp. 369-394 (with Francis Teal).

"On the Duration of Civil War," 2004, Journal of Peace Research 41:3, pp. 253-273 (with Paul Collier and Anke Hoeffler).

"Do African Manufacturing Firm Learn from Exporting?" 2004, Journal of Development Studies 40:3, pp. 115-141 (with Arne Bigsten, Paul Collier, Stefan Dercon, Marcel Fafchamps, Bernard Gauthier, Jan Willem Gunning, Abena Oduro, Remco Oostendorp, Catherine Pattillo, Francis Teal, and Albert Zeufack).

"Risk Sharing in Labour Markets," 2003,World Bank Economic Review 17:3, pp. 349-366 (with Arne Bigsten, Paul Collier, Stefan Dercon, Marcel Fafchamps, Bernard Gauthier, Jan Willem Gunning, Abena Oduro, Remco Oostendorp, Catherine Pattillo, Francis Teal, and Albert Zeufack).

"Are manufacturing exports the key to economic success in Africa?" 2003, Journal of African Economies 12:1, pp. 1-29 (with Francis Teal).

"Credit Constraints in Manufacturing Enterprises in Africa," 2003, Journal of African Economies 12:1, pp. 104-125 (with Arne Bigsten, Paul Collier, Stefan Dercon, Marcel Fafchamps, Bernard Gauthier, Jan Willem Gunning, Abena Oduro, Remco Oostendorp, Catherine Pattillo, Francis Teal, and Albert Zeufack).

"Skills, Investment and Exports from Manufacturing Firms in Africa," 2000, Journal of Development Studies 37(2), pp. 13-43 (with Francis Teal).

"Rates of Return on Physical and Human Capital in Africa's Manufacturing Sector," 2000, Economic Development and Cultural Change 48(4), pp. 801-827 (with Simon Appleton, Arne Bigsten, Paul Collier, Stefan Dercon, Marcel Fafchamps, Bernard Gauthier, Jan Willem Gunning, Abena Oduro, Remco Oostendorp, Catherine Pattillo, Francis Teal, and Albert Zeufack).

"Contract Flexibility and Dispute Resolution in African Manufacturing," 2000, Journal of Development Studies 36(4), pp. 1-37, (with Arne Bigsten, Paul Collier, Stefan Dercon, Marcel Fafchamps, Bernard Gauthier, Jan Willem Gunning, Abena Oduro, Remco Oostendorp, Catherine Pattillo, Francis Teal, and Albert Zeufack).

"Investment in Africa's Manufacturing Sector: a Four Country Panel Data Analysis," 1999, Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics 61(4), pp. 489-512 (with Arne Bigsten, Paul Collier, Stefan Dercon, Bernard Gauthier, Jan Willem Gunning, Anders Isaksson, Abena Oduro, Remco Oostendorp, Catherine Pattillo, Michel Sylvain, Francis Teal, and Albert Zeufack).

"The Export Orientation of African Manufacturing: a Firm Level Analysis," 1999, Journal of International Trade and Economic Development, 8(1), pp. 53-71 (with Arne Bigsten, Paul Collier, Stefan Dercon, Marcel Fafchamps, Bernard Gauthier, Jan Willem Gunning, Abena Oduro, Remco Oostendorp, Catherine Pattillo, Francis Teal, and Albert Zeufack).

Books

Manufacturing Transformation: Comparative Studies of Industrial Development in Africa and Emerging Asia. July 2016. Editor; with Carol Newman, John Page, John Rand, Abebe Shimeles and Finn Tarp. This book is Open Access.

Made in Africa: A New Industrial Strategy. Brookings Institution Press. February 2016 (with Carol Newman, John Page, John Rand, Abebe Shimeles and Finn Tarp).

Empirical Development Economics. Routledge. September 2014 (with Francis Teal; contributions by Markus Eberhardt, Simon Quinn and Andrew Zeitlin).

Book chapters

"The Ethiopian manufacturing sector: Productivity, export orientation, and competitiveness," Chapter 33 in (eds) Fantu Cheru, Christopher Cramer, Arkebe Oqubay, The Oxford Handbook of the Ethiopian Economy. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

“Enterprise Agglomeration and Firm Performance in Sub-Saharan Africa,” Chapter 9 in (eds.) Oliver Morrissey, Ricardo Lopez and Kishor Sharma, Handbook of International Trade, 2015. Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd. (with Eyerusalem Siba).

“Teff Consumption in Urban Ethiopia: Trends and Correlates” in (eds.) Minten, B., and Taffesse, A.S, The Economics of Teff. IFPRI. Forthcoming (with Yonas Alem).

"The Manufacturing Sector," in (eds.) Christopher S. Adam, Paul Collier and Njuguna S. Ndung'u, 2010, Kenya: Policies for Prosperity, Chapter 10, pp.243-266. Oxford: Oxford University Press (with Arne Bigsten and Peter Kimuyu).

"Is Education a Path to Gender Equality in the Labour Market? Evidence from Pakistan", (with Monazza Aslam and Geeta Kingdon), forthcoming in Tembon, M. and L. Fort (eds.) Educating Girls for the 21st Century: Gender Equality, Empowerment and Economic Growth. Washington D.C: The World Bank.

"How can policy towards manufacturing in Africa reduce poverty? A review of the current evidence from cross-country firm studies," 2004, (with Francis Teal), in Wohlmuth, K, A. Gutowski, T. Knedlik, M. Meyn and S. Pitamber (eds.) African Development Perspectives Yearbook 2002/03. African Entrepreneurship and Private Sector Development. Muenster, Germany: Lit-Verlag.

"Investment Behaviour," 2002, Chapter 7 in Structure and Performance of Manufacturing in Kenya (Eds. Arne Bigsten and Peter Kimuyu), Palgrave.

"Exporting and Efficiency in African Manufacturing," 2001, in Policies to Promote Competitiveness in Manufacturing in Sub-Saharan Africa (Eds. A. K. Fosu, S. M. Nsouli, A. Varoudakis), (with Arne Bigsten, Paul Collier, Stefan Dercon, Marcel Fafchamps, Bernard Gauthier, Jan Willem Gunning, Abena Oduro, Remco Oostendorp, Catherine Pattillo, Francis Teal, and Albert Zeufack). Paris: IMF, AERC and Development Centre of the OECD.

Book reviews

Review of Pathways Out of Poverty: Private Firms and Economic Mobility in Developing Countries, Fields, Gary S. and Guy Pfeffermann (eds.), 2003, London, Boston: Kluwer. The World Economy, 2005, 28(8), pp. 1192-93.

Other publications

"Competition and Exports Key for Manufacturing," Daily Brief Article for Oxford Analytica, 2006.