Malmquist Total Factor Productivity Research Articles

Measuring intra-industry trade and productivity in the South African pharmaceutical sector

Background: The South African pharmaceutical sector is Africa’s largest and most advanced but heavily depends on imported products and active pharmaceutical ingredients to meet its demands. The status quo is due to low intra-industry trade, which is necessary to induce innovation and technological progress essential for accelerating local production, export growth and reducing dependence on imports.Aim: The primary objective of this article was to examine intra-industry trade in South Africa’s pharmaceutical sector and subsequently, total factor productivity (TFP) as a key driver of intra-industry trade.Setting: Intra-industry trade was measured using data obtained from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development databases, while the TFP was measured using data from the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) covering 2001–2021.Method: The marginal intra-industry trade index (MIIT) and unmatched changes in trade (UMCIT) were used to measure intra-industry trade, while the Malmquist total factor productivity (MTFP) index was used to analyse SARB data to determine TFP.Results: The MIIT index and UMCIT revealed that trade is predominantly inter-industry with episodes of industry specialisation and significant intra-industry changes. The MTFP results showed that TFP is solely driven by technical changes.Conclusion: The study recommends that South Africa should develop a coordinated and sustainable innovation system in the pharmaceutical sector. This will help prevent sporadic technological advancements and promote intra-industry trade.Contribution: The article contributes to the empirical literature on intra-industry trade in developing countries by showing the correlation between an improvement in TFP and an increase in intra-industry trade necessary to stimulate domestic production to reduce high import demand.

Analysis of the Environmental Performances of EU Countries and Türkiye

The paper aims to evaluate the environmental performance efficiency of (European Union (EU) countries and to calculate Türkiye's position among these countries. The performance of EU countries and Türkiye for the period 2010-2022 is assessed using the variables of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHG), Material Flows (MF) and Tree Cover Loss (TCL). For this purpose, Decoupling Analysis and Malmquist Total Factor Productivity Index (MTFPI) were applied. As a result of the analysis, there was no productivity change in Lithuania, Slovakia, Sweden and Türkiye. In the same period, there is an increase in productivity change for 12 countries and a decrease for 12 countries. In general, total factor productivity increased in 1 country and decreased in 27 countries during the study period. The country with the highest increase in technical productivity change, in other words technological development, was Hungary with 3.7 percent. According to the decoupling elasticities of these 28 countries, the decoupling elasticity indices of GHG and MF are positive for Türkiye and Greece. For Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, France, France, Germany, Portugal and Spain, the decoupling index of GHG and MF from GDP is negatively elastic for that period. For the decoupling index of TCL from GDP, Germany shows an elasticity greater than one in that period.

The effect of COVID-19 pandemic on the efficiency of training and research hospitals in Turkey

The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which emerged in December 2019, caused an increase in the demand for healthcare services globally. Hospitals’ operational and financial performances are thought to have been negatively affected by COVID-19 because they had to postpone providing non-urgent healthcare services to prevent infection. This study aimed to evaluate how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the efficiency of training and research hospitals in Turkey. The study population comprised 51 training and research hospitals. The Malmquist Total Factor Productivity index was used to examine the changes in the efficiency of the training and research hospitals between 2017–2018, 2018–2019, 2019–2020, and 2020–2021. In addition, a repeated-measures ANOVA test was used to evaluate whether a significant difference existed in the efficiency levels of the hospitals in the pre-COVID-19 pandemic periods (2017–2018 and 2018–2019) and during them (2019–2020 and 2020–2021). No significant difference was found between hospitals' technical and scale efficiency levels before and during the pandemic, but the change in total factor productivity was significant (F = 34.18; p < 0.001). Our research findings provide clues about how hospitals' behaviours changed during the pandemic compared to before the pandemic. It was observed that efficiency decreases in hospitals at the onset of the pandemic disappeared with the adaptation process to the new normal. Technical efficiency decreased in two periods (2017–2018 and 2020–2021) when total factor productivity increased. Reverse changes in total factor productivity and technical efficiency indicate that technological change drives total factor productivity. This study identified differences in hospital efficiency during both ordinary and extraordinary periods. It would benefit managers and policymakers to recognise these differences and focus on managerial skills that ensure technical efficiency in extraordinary circumstances to mitigate possible efficiency losses.

Efficiency Analysis of Life Insurance Companies in Indonesia and Malaysia

This study focuses on measuring the performance of life insurance companies in Indonesia and Malaysia. Input oriented Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) uses panel data to extract the efficiency score of 5 life insurance companies from Indonesia and 5 life insurance companies from Malaysia for the year of 2015-2019. DEA-based Malmquist Total Factor Productivity (TFP) Index used to measure the efficiency change along the study period. This study utilizes asset and operating expenses as input variables, as for output variables, this study utilizes premium and investment income. Based on an efficiency score computed by DEA, most of the life insurance companies in both countries perform efficiently during the study period. However, life insurance companies in Indonesia still perform more efficiently than Malaysian life insurance companies. The results of the Malmquist TFP Index for life insurance companies in both countries show that there is 2.5% improvement in technical efficiency change, 1.5% deterioration in technology efficiency change, 0.6% improvement in pure efficiency change, 1.9% improvement on scale efficiency change, and 0.9% increase in TFP change. It shows that the main reason for TFP increased is due to improvement of technical efficiency change.

An innovative approach to evaluating sustainable development performance: The case of Turkey

AbstractThe assessment of sustainable development necessitates precise productivity measurement. Existing literature reveals a wide array of methods employed for this purpose. However, these approaches give rise to concerns regarding the accurate assessment of both efficiency (EC) and technical (TC) changes. Additionally, the data used for productivity measurement are often subject to uncertainty. In response to these shortcomings in the existing literature, this study introduces the Environmental Fuzzy Malmquist Total Factor Productivity (EFM) index for productivity measurement. Within this framework, the study aims to assess Turkey's environmental sensitivity and sustainable development performance using the proposed EFM index. To achieve this goal, the study first constructs the Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI), considering undesirable environmental pollution variables related to air, water, and soil pollution. Subsequently, the ESI is integrated with the Fuzzy Malmquist Total Factor Productivity Index (FM) to develop the new EFM index. The proposed integrated EFM index exhibits an enhanced ability to evaluate both EC and TC while addressing the challenges stemming from uncertainty. The proposed integrated EFM index indicates that the Marmara and Aegean regions of Turkey demonstrate the highest level of sustainable development performance. Finally, the study offers recommendations and policies to assist developing countries in enhancing their sustainable development performance.

Veri Zarflama Analizi ve Malmquist Toplam Faktör Verimlilik İndeksi ile Etkinlik Analizi: A Grubu Hastanelerde Bir Uygulama

Sağlık hizmet sunumunda kritik role sahip kurumlar olan hastanelerin üretim süreçlerindeki etkinliklerinin sağlanması bir gerekliliktir. Bu araştırma ile Türkiye’de kullanılan hastane sınıflandırma sistemine göre A-1 ve A-2 grubu hastanelerin 2018-2020 yıllarına ait verilerini kullanarak bulundukları illerin sağlık alanındaki etkinliklerinin ölçülmesi ve etkinliklerinin yıllar içerisindeki değişimlerinin ortaya çıkarılması amaçlanmıştır. Bu amaçla, araştırmada non-parametrik bir yöntem olan Veri Zarflama Analizi (VZA) ve Malmquist Toplam Faktör Verimlilik İndeksi (MTFVİ) yöntemleri kullanılmıştır. A-1 grubundaki illerin ölçeğe göre sabit getiri varsayımı altında yapılan VZA’ne göre (CCR modeli) üç yıl için sırasıyla %53,1; %53,1; %56,2’si etkindir. Ölçeğe göre değişken getiri varsayımı altında (BCC Modeli) yapılan analize göre ise etkin olan illerin oranı %65,6; %68,7; %75’tir. Bu iki analiz sonucunda etkin olmayan iller için örnek almaları gereken iller belirlenmiş ve etkin sınırda üretim için girdi değişkenlerinde yapılması gereken değişiklikler ile ilgili önerilerde bulunulmuştur. MTFVİ sonuçlarına göre, 2018-2019 periyodunda 24 ilin; 2019-2020 periyodunda 8 ilin toplam faktör verimliliklerinde iyileşme olduğu görülmüştür. A-2 grubunda ise CCR modeline göre illerin %45,4, %36,3 ve %27,2’si; BCC modeline göre %66,6, %63,6 ve % 45,4’ü etkindir. MTFVİ sonuçlarına bakıldığında ise, 2018-2019 periyodunda 23; 2019-2020 periyodunda ise 17 ilin toplam faktör verimliliklerinde iyileşme olmuştur. Her iki periyotta da bu iyileşmelerin kaynağının neredeyse tüm illerde sadece teknolojik ilerlemeler olduğu sonucuna ulaşılmıştır.&#x0D; Anahtar Kelimeler: Etkinlik Analizi, Veri Zarflama Analizi, Malmquist Toplam Faktör Verimlilik İndeksi&#x0D; JEL Sınıflandırması: D24, I10, G20

Driving factors of changes in energy intensity: A comparison between energy exporting and importing countries

This paper compares the driving factors of changes in energy intensity in both net energy exporting and importing countries using a DEA-Malmquist (Data Envelopment Analysis) and panel GMM (Generalized Method of Moments) methods over the period of 2000–2021. The findings show that technological progress has played a significant role in reducing of energy intensity in both groups. Moreover, we use the DEA method to decompose the Malmquist total factor productivity (TFP) into its components including technical change (TC), efficiency change (EC), pure efficiency change (PEC) and scale efficiency change (SEC). The results show that in energy exporting countries, the effects of each of these TFP components on energy intensity are negative but relatively weak, while the effects of these components on reducing energy intensity in importing countries is considerable. Specifically, the estimated coefficient of the pure efficiency component in reducing energy intensity in very remarkable, which shows the high importance of the efficiency components of TFP in energy management. Next, we investigate what is the main driver of technological progress in both the energy exporting and importing countries. The findings imply that in net energy exporting countries trade openness is a dominant factor to improve productivity, while in net energy importing countries, internal R&amp;D is the dominant factor for improving technological efficiency.

Efficiency measurement of real estate investment trusts traded in BIST with data envelopment analysis and Malmquist total factor productivity index

Purpose- The aim of the study is to measure the efficiency of real estate investment trusts traded on BIST with data envelopment analysis and the Malmquist total factor productivity index. Efficiency and productivity were measured using the Malmquist total productivity analysis and the Data Envelopment Analysis approach, both of whose application fields have grown recently. Methodology- The Malmquist total factor productivity index is used to analyze changes in total factor productivity of 20 real estate investment trusts operating in 2019–2020–2021, as well as the reasons for these changes, on the axis of variables such as current ratio, leverage ratio, long-term debt-to-asset ratio, short-term debt-to-asset ratio, equity-to-asset ratio, return on assets, net profit margin, and gross profit margin. Findings- The results of the analysis show that 8 companies that are relatively efficient according to their CCR technical efficiency values have been identified; these are ALGYO, AVGYO, HLGYO, MRGYO, MSGYO, PAGYO, RYGYO, and SNGYO. It has been observed that these companies have been effective in an output-oriented way over the past three years. Conclusion- The firms that are below the efficiency limit need to take a few things into account, according to the results. They need to alter a few input variables to reach a higher level of efficiency. It is anticipated that all these findings will support the decision-making of the companies and the investors who are considering investing in these companies. Keywords: Real estate investment trusts, data envelopment analysis, Malmquist total factor productivity index, efficiency measurement. JEL Codes: C67, L25, G29

Do ecological protection approaches affect total factor productivity change of cropland production in Sweden?

Ecological protection approaches are important in achieving sustainable productivity growth in agriculture. Based on an unbalanced panel dataset for 2010–2016, we used stochastic frontier analysis-based Malmquist total factor productivity index to estimate total factor productivity change of Swedish crop production and its components (efficiency change, technical change, scale change). We then examined the effect of ecological protection approaches on total factor productivity change. The empirical results demonstrated that ecological protection approaches such as organic farming, mixed cropping or integrated farming could hamper total factor productivity growth. The results also indicated that average total factor productivity change in the study period was positive and average technical efficiency of the Swedish crop production was 71%. Among the components of total factor productivity change, average scale change was positive. Average technical efficiency change and average technical change were both negative. If technical efficiency and technological progress can be improved, that would increase the positive change in total factor productivity. This suggests that policies on compensation or insurance against productivity loss are required to encourage mainstreaming of ecological protection approaches among farmers.

Performance Assessment of Malaysian Fossil Fuel Power Plants: A Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) Approach

This paper investigated the performance of Malaysian power plants from the year 2015 to 2017 using Malmquist Total Factor Productivity (TFP) index, which is based on Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). This approach offers substantial advantages as compared to other existing methods as it can measure productivity changes over time for a variety of inputs and outputs. Moreover, it comprises two primary components: the technical efficiency change and the technological change indexes that provide clearer insight into the factors that are responsible for shifts in total factor productivity. This study uses a single input, installed generation capacity (MW), and two outputs, average thermal efficiency (%) and average equivalent availability factor (%). These output-input data included ten main power plants: TNB Natural Gas, SESB Natural Gas, SESB Diesel, SEB Natural Gas, SEB Coal, SEB Diesel, IPP Semenanjung Natural Gas, IPP Semenanjung Coal, IPP Sabah Natural Gas, and IPP Sabah Diesel. The results have two significant implications for fossil fuel power plants in Malaysia. First, technological change was the primary factor in boosting the TFP performance of the fossil fuel power plants in Malaysia. Meanwhile, the decline in TFP performance in Malaysian fossil fuel power plants may be attributed, in part, to a lack of innovation in technical components as the results found that the average technical efficiency changes in 2015 – 2016 were at 146% and then dropped significantly to 2% in 2016 – 2017. Second, the average scale efficiency changes rose dramatically from -53% to 3% providing a significant contribution to the improvement of technical efficiency changes. The fossil fuel power plants become efficient as the power plants’ size increases. This indicates that the size of a power plant positively impacts the performance of the TFP.

Renewable Energy and Economic Efficiency in the Framework of Sustainable Development: Malmquist Index and Tobit Model

Today, energy is as important as labour, capital and technology for the growth of countries. As countries grow economically, they try to achieve the same or more amounts of output with fewer inputs. In other words, countries target efficiency based growth. As the economic growth of countries increases, their energy requirements also increase. Regarding countries that are not rich in domestic resources, this increase, imposes significant costs. On the other hand, the finite energy supply in countries rich in domestic resources is an important problem. That is why the phenomenon of renewable energy has become a trend all over the world. In addition to reducing import dependence on energy, new policies are required to reduce the effects of climate changes and to protect natural resources. That is why; renewable energy and economic efficiency are an attractive research area. In the study, efficiency scores were obtained by calculating the Malmquist total factor productivity index in the period 1992–2018 for 10 countries among the N11 countries. Then, the efficiency values obtained by using the two stage estimation method were used as the dependent variables. The test results based on Tobit regression indicated that the increase in the supply of renewable energy positively increases economic efficiency. It can be said that the supply of renewable energy will lead to economic efficiency in the future.

Determining the Financial Performances of ISE Tourism Companies in the Period of 2009-2020 by Data Envelope Analysis

The tourism sector makes significant contributions to national and regional development. On the other hand, emerging political instabilities and any crisis have a significant impact on the development of the sector. In this study, it is aimed to determine the financial performance of companies within the scope of Istanbul Stock Exchange (ISE) Tourism index between 2009-2020. For this purpose, the Malmquist Total Factor Productivity index was created by using the financial ratios calculated from the financial statements of the companies. As a result of the study, it was determined that there was a significant decrease in the performances and productivity of tourism companies between 2016-2020. It has been revealed that the effects of the political crises that took place in Turkey were involved in the decrease in productivity in this period.

Evaluating the decentralization of public hospitals in Turkey in terms of technical efficiency: data envelopment analysis and Malmquist index

PurposeDecree Law No. 663 introduced a decentralized organizational structure and administration pertaining to Turkish public hospitals in November 2011. This study aims to explore the effects of the public hospital unions (PHUs), which were a result of Decree Law No. 663, on the efficiency and productivity of public hospitals.Design/methodology/approachData envelopment analysis (DEA) and DEA-based Malmquist total factor productivity (TFP) index were used from 2011 to 2016. Raw materials and supply expenses, salaries and fringe benefits, other service costs, general administrative expenses, total number of beds, number of specialists, number of residents, number of general practitioners, number of nurses and midwives and other medical officials were used as input variables. Working capital turnover, number of inpatients, number of outpatients and number of surgical operations for Groups A, B and C were used as output variables.FindingsAccording to the DEA scores, the percentage of efficient hospitals showed a declining trend from 2011 to 2016. The TFP results also showed a decreasing trend from 2011 to 2016.Practical implicationsProviding administrative and financial autonomy to public hospital managers may cause efficiency and productivity losses, which is contrary to expectations.Originality/valueThis study is the first to reveal the impact of decentralization of public healthcare providers on their performance levels in Turkey.

USING MALMQUIST TOTAL FACTOR PRODUCTIVITY METHOD FOR AGRICULTURAL SECTOR EFFICIENCY OF MIKTA COUNTRIES

MIKTA is a diverse and cross-regional grouping of powers that brings together Mexico, Indonesia, the Republic of Korea, Turkey and Australia. MIKTA countries are significant economic powers and all are members of the Group of Twenty. Bye the way, agricultural development is one of the most powerful tools to finish extreme poverty, improve shared prosperity, and find food for a forecasted 9.7 billion people by 2050. But agricultural growth, reduction in powerty and food security are at risk. Recent shocks such as COVID-19 related disruptions to extreme weather, pests and conflicts are all affecting food systems, resulting in inflation and increasing hunger. Increasing climate change could further reduce yields, especially in the food insecure regions around the world. So, the research aims whether the agricultural sector performs well or not within the MIKTA countries which are thought of bearing significant importance for their relavant continents. In this meaning, data for MIKTA countries throughout 2018 and 2019 from World Bank has been taken. Here, agricultural land, rural population and rural population percent of total population are inputs. On the other hand, agriculture, forestry, and fishing value added is the output of the DEA model. Then, analysis have been done using Malmquist Total Factor Productivity Method (MTFPM), super efficiency measures have been found out and ineffective countries in MIKTA have been detected.

Efficiency Dynamics of Sugar Industry of Pakistan.

Pakistan is the 15th largest producer of sugar in the world, 5th largest in terms of area under sugar cultivation and 60th in yield. The sugar industry is the 2nd largest agro based industry which comprises of 81 sugar mills. With this scenario, Pakistan has to import sugar which exposes it to the effects of shortage and rising prices in the world. The present sugar crisis has opened up new avenues for researcher to analyse the performance and efficiency of the firms in this sector. Total factor productivity plays a significant role in measuring the performance of a firm which ultimately affects the shareholder’s value. This paper analyses the performance of sugar firms in Pakistan and estimate/calculate the Malmquist total factor productivity growth indices using non-parametric approach. TFP growth is further decomposed into technical, scale and managerial efficiency change using balanced panel data of 20 sugar firms listed on Karachi Stock Exchange for the period 1998 to 2007. The results reflect a tormenting picture for the sugar industry. Overall sugar industry improved technological progress by 0.8 percent while managerial efficiency change put a negative effect on the productivity by a same percentage; as a result the overall total factor productivity during 1998-2007 remained almost static with a decline of 0.1 percent. The analysis of TFP and its sources in individual year for overall sugar industry also presents divergent trend. The research suggests that sugar industry is facing serious productivity growth problems where no increase is recorded in total factor productivity during 1998 to 2007. The sugar industry is lacking in terms of managerial efficiency which could be explained by a general reduction in the quality of managerial decision-making among the best practice firms. Regardless of the reason for this decline, it has potentially serious implications for the longer-term financial viability of these sugar firms. The pattern of TFP growth tends to be driven more by technical change (or technical progress) rather than improvements in technical efficiency.

Evaluating the Efficiency and Productivity of Colombian Criminal Justice

Abstract In this paper, Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) is used to calculate the technical efficiency and the Malmquist Total Factor Productivity Index (MPI) of the municipal (JM) and circuit courts (JC) of the ordinary jurisdiction of the Colombian criminal justice system, from 2012 to 2016. The results show an average technical inefficiency of 16, 9% for de JCs, and 17.3% for JMs. Additionally, we find a total factor productivity (TFP) decline for these courts of 24 and 44%, respectively. Although both components of the MPI registered average values lower than one, the decrease in TFP is mainly driven by the decline in the technical change component.

Levels, trends, and determinants of effectiveness on the hierarchical medical system in China: Data envelopment analysis and bootstrapping truncated regression analysis.

BackgroundThe hierarchical medical system (HMS) refers to the classification of treatment according to disease priorities based on severity and difficulty to promote the fairness of medical services for residents, which is regarded as the key to the success of medical reform in China.MethodsIn the past decade of “New Medical Reform,” the efficiency of HMS, including secondary and tertiary hospitals and primary healthcare centers (PHCs), was measured horizontally and vertically by employing the combination of an output-oriented superefficiency slack-based model-data envelopment analysis (SE-SBM-DEA) model with the Malmquist total factor productivity index (MTFP). In the second stage, the overall technical efficiency (OTE) scores were regressed against a set of environmental characteristics and several managerial factors through bootstrapping truncated regression.ResultsOn average, the OTE score in tertiary hospitals was 0.93, which was higher than that in secondary hospitals and PHCs (0.9 and 0.92, respectively). In terms of trend, the OTE of tertiary hospitals declined at first and then increased. The opposite was true of secondary hospitals, in which the APC of the OTE was 10.82 and −3.11% in early and late 2012, respectively. The PHCs generally showed a fluctuating downward trend. In the aspects of productivity, all institutions showed a downturn by an annual average rate of 2.73, 0.51, and 2.70%, respectively. There was a significant negative relationship between the ratio of outpatients to inpatients and tertiary hospitals. Additionally, the medical technical personnel per 1,000 population negatively affected PHCs. In contrast, the GDP per capita had a significantly positive effect on tertiary hospitals, and the number of beds per 1,000 population positively influenced PHCs.ConclusionThe efficiency of medical institutions at various levels in HMS was unbalanced and took the form of an “inverted pyramid.” Multilateral factors influence the efficiency of HMS, and to address it, multi-intervention packages focusing on sinking high-quality medical resources and improving healthcare capacity, and guiding hierarchical medical practice should be adopted.

A Two Stage Technical Efficiency of Primary Schools in Ethiopia: The Case of Harari Regional State

This study aims to estimate relative technical and scale efficiency of primary schools in Harari Region. To measure change in productivity of school for the period 2013-2019 and to determine factors that affecting the technical inefficiency of schools, quantitative approach with a two stage Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) employed for measuring technical efficiency of schools. Malmquist Total Factor Productivity (MTFP) index was implemented to determine overall productivity growth of school within the given period. Censored Tobit regression model was used to determine factors affecting school’s inefficiency. The result of the Constant Return to Scale DEA model shows that 10(21.7%) schools were found technically efficient, while 36(78.3%) were inefficient. The VRS DEA model indicated that fourteen (30.4%) schools were technically efficient and thirty two (69.6%) schools were technically inefficient. Out of the total schools, 47.8% schools were found to be scale efficient, while 52.2% were scale inefficient. Further, non-government schools have higher efficiency scores (99.6 %) than their counterpart government schools (91.6%). The Tobit model regression result indicated that school’s ownership and location have a significant and negative sing, while coefficients of student-teacher ratio, student-class ratio and teacher’s qualification and experiences had a positive singe with inefficiency of schools. Keywords: Data envelopment analysis, technical efficiency, productivity, Tobit model. DOI: 10.7176/JEP/13-25-01 Publication date: September 30 th 2022

Dynamics of total factor productivity growth: An empirical analysis of Indian commercial banks

This paper investigates the total factor productivity (TFP) change scenario among Indian commercial banks during 1998–2017. We measure the change in the Malmquist TFP index and decompose this into technological, efficiency, and scale change components using data envelopment analysis (DEA). Further, the bootstrap-based Simar and Wilson (2007) procedure is applied to correct the bias from the conventional DEA estimates. We also explain the variations in TFP estimates using a set of bank-specific and macroeconomic variables with a system-generalised method of moments and bias-corrected fixed-effects models. Our results show an improvement in TFP among Indian commercial banks– with growth relatively higher during the pre-crisis than in the post-crisis period. The productivity gains are driven mainly by technological progress rather than efficiency improvements. Amongst different ownership categories, foreign-owned banks achieve the highest overall productivity gains, followed by the domestic privately owned and state-owned banks. Finally, our TFP regression results show that return on assets, diversification, GDP per capita, Herfindahl–Hirschman Index, and inflation are the main variables responsible for driving these total factor productivity differences.

Technical Efficiency of Rice Farmers in Telangana, India: Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA)

It is known that inability of the farmers to exploit the available production technologies results in lower efficiencies of production. So, the measurement of technical efficiency in agricultural crops in developing countries like India gained renewed attention since the late 1980s from an increasing number of researchers. Accordingly, the present study has employed Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and Malmquist Total Factor Productivity Index to ascertain the Technical Efficiency of rice productivity (2021-2022) and its changes over the study period (2019-2020 to 2021- 2022) respectively in Telangana, India. This study was based on secondary data pertaining to rice productivity (output variable), fertilizer doses (NPK), seed rate, water applied and organic manure (input variables). The findings of Data Envelopment Analysis revealed that the overall mean technical efficiency score across all the Decision-Making Units was 0.860 ranged between 0.592 to 1.000. So, the Decision-Making Units, on an average, could reduce their input usage by 14 per cent and still could produce the same level of rice output. Further, fertilizers (60.54 kg/ha); seed (5.63 kg/ha); water (234.48 mm) and organic manure (3.76 t/ha) use can be reduced without affecting the current level of rice productivity. Malmquist Total Factor Productivity indices (2019-2020 to 2021-2022) revealed that the mean scores of technical efficiency change, pure technical efficiency change and scale efficiency change are more than one (1.153, 1.042 and 1.009 respectively), unlike technological change (0.983). All the Decision-Making Units showed impressive progress with reference to technical efficiency change (1.112) and it is the sole contributor for Total Factor Productivity change in rice cultivation. The DEA results suggest that farmers should be informed about the use of inputs as per the scientific recommendations to boost the technical efficiency of rice productivity in Telangana. It also calls for policy initiatives for distribution of quality inputs to the farmers to boost technical efficiency in rice production.