Publication:
The Role of Firm Dynamics in Aggregate Productivity and Formal Job Flows in Zambia

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dc.contributor.authorSimbeye, Laban
dc.contributor.authorLungu, Eliya
dc.contributor.authorKumwenda, Andreya
dc.contributor.authorBanda, Edna
dc.contributor.authorMsoni, Jonathan
dc.contributor.authorKuo, Ryan
dc.date.accessioned2024-04-18T19:09:33Z
dc.date.available2024-04-18T19:09:33Z
dc.date.issued2024-04-18
dc.description.abstractZambia’s private sector must deliver quality jobs at scale to keep up with its expanding working age population, contribute to economic transformation, and reduce poverty. This entails both the creation of high-quality jobs and productivity improvement among existing jobs and firms. This paper analyzes the dynamics of formal firms to identify the drivers and barriers to productivity, formal employment, and formal wage growth in Zambia. Leveraging firm and worker administrative tax data from Zambia, the paper decomposes labor productivity and wage growth among formal firms and workers in Zambia into within-firm, between-firm, inter-sectoral, and dynamic components. The findings show that the aggregate labor productivity of formal firms declined over 2014–21, driven by secular within-firm declines in the non-mining industry and service sectors. By contrast, labor productivity grew in agriculture and remained flat in mining over the same period. Real wage trends for formal workers have mostly mirrored labor productivity dynamics, declining 40-50 percent across non-agriculture sectors but growing slightly in agriculture, largely driven by within-firm shifts rather than between-firm or between-sector dynamics. The declines in labor productivity and wages reflect business environment challenges related to access to finance and electricity, as well as burdensome formal compliance requirements and competition with the informal sector. Within-firm labor productivity challenges also reflect low skills and capacity—including low technology adoption—among both firms and workers.en
dc.identifierhttp://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/099258304182428569/IDU19eae6d98171dd14ad11ac9613b9d79fe3a29
dc.identifier.doi10.1596/1813-9450-10756
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10986/41445
dc.languageEnglish
dc.language.isoen_US
dc.publisherWashington, DC: World Bank
dc.relation.ispartofseriesPublic Research Working Paper; 10756
dc.rightsCC BY 3.0 IGO
dc.rights.holderWorld Bank
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo/
dc.subjectPRODUCTIVITY
dc.subjectFORMAL JOBS
dc.subjectFORMAL WAGES
dc.subjectSTRUCTURAL TRANSFORMATION
dc.titleThe Role of Firm Dynamics in Aggregate Productivity and Formal Job Flows in Zambiaen
dc.typeWorking Paper
dspace.entity.typePublication
okr.crossref.titleThe Role of Firm Dynamics in Aggregate Productivity and Formal Job Flows in Zambia
okr.date.disclosure2024-04-18
okr.date.lastmodified2024-04-18T00:00:00Zen
okr.doctypePolicy Research Working Paper
okr.doctypePublications & Research
okr.docurlhttp://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/099258304182428569/IDU19eae6d98171dd14ad11ac9613b9d79fe3a29
okr.guid099258304182428569
okr.identifier.docmidIDU-9eae6d98-71dd-4ad1-ac96-3b9d79fe3a29
okr.identifier.doi10.1596/1813-9450-10756
okr.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.1596/1813-9450-10756
okr.identifier.externaldocumentum34303649
okr.identifier.internaldocumentum34303649
okr.identifier.reportWPS10756
okr.import.id3956
okr.importedtrueen
okr.language.supporteden
okr.pdfurlhttp://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/099258304182428569/pdf/IDU19eae6d98171dd14ad11ac9613b9d79fe3a29.pdfen
okr.region.administrativeAfrica Eastern and Southern (AFE)
okr.region.countryZambia
okr.sectorPublic Administration - Industry, Trade and Services,Public Administration - Agriculture, Fishing & Forestry,Central Government (Central Agencies)
okr.themeInclusive Growth,Job Creation,Gender,Human Development and Gender,Economic Policy,Economic Growth and Planning,Environment and Natural Resource Management,Private Sector Development,Climate change,Urban and Rural Development,Jobs,Adaptation,Flood and Drought Risk Management,Macroeconomic & Structural Policy Modelling,Disaster Risk Management,Structural Transformation and Economic Diversification
okr.topicFinance and Financial Sector Development::Microfinance
okr.topicSocial Protections and Labor::Employment and Unemployment
okr.topicSocial Protections and Labor::Skills Development and Labor Force Training
okr.topicSocial Protections and Labor::Wages, Compensation & Benefits
okr.topicIndustry::Industrial Management
okr.unitEFI-AFR1-MTI-MacroFiscal-1 (EAEM1)
okr.unitEFI-AFR1-FCI-Finance-1 (EAEF1)
relation.isSeriesOfPublication26e071dc-b0bf-409c-b982-df2970295c87
relation.isSeriesOfPublication.latestForDiscovery26e071dc-b0bf-409c-b982-df2970295c87
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