Insurance and economic growth in Ghana

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrews Osei-Bonsu ◽  
Anselm Komla Abotsi ◽  
Emmanuel Carsamer

PurposeThe Ghanaian insurance industry has been transformed significantly from state-led to a market-driven one over the past decades. The empirical literature on the causal relationship between insurance and economic growth has been mixed, but little study on this has been done in Ghana. This study therefore empirically examines the effect of the growing insurance industry on the economic growth in Ghana.Design/methodology/approachQuantitative research design was deployed in the study. The study used Johansen–Juselius cointegration test and vector error correction model. The study deployed quarterly data from the first quarter of 2006 to the second quarter of 2018 sourced from the World Bank (World Development Indicators), National Insurance Commission, Ghana Statistical Service and Bank of Ghana.FindingsFindings revealed that there is a significant and positive short and long-run relationship between insurance and economic growth in Ghana, bidirectional causality between insurance and economic growth and also a long-run effect of innovations (shocks) in insurance on economic growth.Research limitations/implicationsOne of the limitations of the study is the unavailability of quarterly data of some of the variables.Practical implicationsThe study recommends the development and implementation of policies that promote an increase in coverage and access to insurance products to enhance economic growth.Originality/valueThe study finds a bidirectional causality running from insurance premium to economic growth and from economic growth to insurance which is consistent with the feedback hypothesis in the case of Ghana. Impulse response functions and the variance decompositions revealed that innovation (shock) in the insurance industry has a positive impact on economic growth.

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 368-384 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kafayat Amusa ◽  
Mutiu Abimbola Oyinlola

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between government expenditure and economic growth in Botswana over the period 1985‒2016. The study employed the auto-regressive distributed lag (ARDL) bounds testing approach in investigating the nexus. The study makes the argument that the effectiveness of public spending should be assessed not only against the amount of the expenditure but also by the type of the expenditure. The empirical findings showed that aggregate expenditure has a negative short-run and positive long-run effect on economic growth. When expenditure is disaggregated, both forms of expenditures have a positive short-run effect on economic growth, whereas only a long-run positive impact of recurrent expenditure is observed. The study suggests the need to prioritize scarce resources in productive recurrent and development spending that enables increased productivity. Design/methodology/approach This study examined the effectiveness of government spending in Botswana, within an ARDL framework from 1985 to 2016. To achieve this, the analysis is carried out on both an aggregate and disaggregated level. Government spending is divided into recurrent and development expenditures. Findings This study examined the effectiveness of government spending in Botswana, within an ARDL framework from 1985 to 2016. To achieve this, the analysis hinged on both the aggregate and disaggregated levels. The results of the aggregate analysis suggest that total public expenditure has a negative impact on economic growth in the short run; however, its impact becomes positive over the long run. On disaggregating government spending, the results show that both recurrent and development expenditures have a significant positive short-run impact on growth; however, in the long run, the significant positive impact is only observed for recurrent expenditure. Practical implications The results provide evidence of the diverse effects of government expenditure in the country. In the period under investigation, 73 percent of total government expenditure in Botswana was recurrent in nature, whereas 23 percent was related to development. From the results, it can be observed that although the recurrent expenditure has contributed to increased growth and must be encouraged, it is also pertinent for the Botswana Government to endeavor to place more emphasis on productive development expenditure in order to enhance short- and long-term growth. Further, there is a need to strengthen the growth-enhancing structures and to prioritize the scarce economic resources toward productive spending and ensuring continued proper governance over such expenditures. Originality/value The study provides empirical evidence on the effectiveness of government spending in a small open, resource-reliant middle-income SSA economy and argues that the effectiveness of public spending must be assessed not only against the amount of the expenditure but also on the type or composition of the expenditure. The study contributes to the scant empirical literature on Botswana by employing the ARDL approach to cointegration technique in estimating the long- and short-run impact of government expenditure on economic growth between 1985 and 2016.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dong Liu ◽  
Yuantao Xie ◽  
Muhammad Hafeez ◽  
Ahmed Usman

Abstract This study examines the role of financial inclusion on the environment-economic performance in the top five Asian emerging economies. The data used for empirical investigation covers the time period from 1995 to 2019. Financial inclusion is measured through bank branches, bank credit, and insurance premiums. To check long-run associations, the panel-ARDL approach has been employed for empirical analysis. The empirical evidence confirms the significant associations between financial inclusion-GDP nexus and financial inclusion-CO2 nexus. The findings show that bank branches and bank credit have a significantly positive impact on economic growth and CO2 emissions in the long-run. However, insurance premium has no impact on economic growth but it exerts a significant negative impact on carbon emissions in the long-run. Furthermore, energy consumption is highly sensitive to economic growth and carbon emissions. The study delivers imperative points for pollution eradication and attaining sustained economic growth. There is a need for government-level efforts to align the targets of financial inclusion with economic growth and environmental policies.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sreenu Nenavath

Purpose This paper aims to show a long run and causal association between economic growth and transport infrastructure. Design/methodology/approach In this study, the authors use ARDL models through the period 1990 – 2020 to investigate the relationship between transport infrastructure and economic growth in India. Findings The infrastructure has a positive impact on economic growth in India for the long run. Moreover, Granger causality test demonstrates a unidirectional relationship between transport infrastructure to economic development. Stimulatingly, the paper highlights the effect of air infrastructure statistically insignificant on economic growth in the long and short-run period. Originality/value The original outcome from the study delivers an inclusive depiction of determinants of economic growth from transport infrastructure in India, and these findings will help the policymakers to frame policies to improve the transport infrastructure. Hence, it is proposed that the government of Indian should focus more to upsurge the transport infrastructure for higher economic development.


2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (6) ◽  
pp. 1205-1220
Author(s):  
Luís Miguel Marques ◽  
José Alberto Fuinhas ◽  
António Cardoso Marques

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to focus on global energy consumption using the economic growth nexus, the prevalent energy hypothesis at a global level and the impact of the main historical events assessed for the period from 1965 to 2015. Design/methodology/approach Given the confirmed presence of endogeneity and cointegration between energy consumption and economic growth, a vector error correction with structural dummies model was used. Furthermore, the impulse-response functions and variance decomposition were computed to evaluate the variables’ dynamics. Findings Bi-directional causality running from energy consumption to economic growth was found, both in the short and long-run, supporting the feedback hypothesis. It is proved that the 2008 crisis impacted on the global energy–growth nexus. Furthermore, there is evidence of the impact of the 1990s oil price shock on the nexus. Innovations in energy consumption have a positive impact on economic growth; however, this impact tends to be null in the long run. Practical implications The results suggest that at a global level, any energy policy should be carefully designed in order not to hamper economic growth. Countries should not remain indifferent to the policies that other countries might follow. Very few historical crises impacted on the global energy–growth nexus. Originality/value This paper offers a different approach to the study of the energy–growth nexus. The energy–growth nexus is analysed in the major macroeconomic aggregate. Global variables reveal their relevance as a benchmark in the energy–growth nexus. Furthermore, this paper arrives at some conclusions about how historical crises impact on global relationships.


2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (9) ◽  
pp. 3779-3798 ◽  
Author(s):  
David N. Aratuo ◽  
Xiaoli L. Etienne ◽  
Tesfa Gebremedhin ◽  
David M. Fryson

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate the causal linkages between tourism and economic growth in the USA and determine how they respond to shocks in the system. Design/methodology/approach The study uses a variety of time series procedures, including the bounds test, Granger causality test, impulse response functions and generalized variance decomposition to analyze the relationship between monthly tourist arrivals (TA) to the USA, real gross domestic product (GDP) and real effective exchange rates. Findings Results suggest that GDP Granger causes TA in the USA in the long run, indicating the economy-driven tourism growth hypothesis. Additionally, a shock to GDP generates a positive and significant effect on TA that persists in the long-run, while exchange rate shocks only have a significant effect in the first six months. Research limitations/implications Different tourism sectors may exert different degrees of influence on the economy. The use of aggregate data on TA in the analysis assumes homogeneity in the industry, thus, only represents the average relationship between tourism and GDP. Practical implications This study provides insight that shapes the investment, marketing, sustainability decisions of the public and private sectors aim at increasing tourist flows to drive economic development at the national, state and local levels. Originality/value Though several studies have examined the factors influencing the international tourist demand of the USA, this is the first to investigate the causal relationships between tourism, GDP and exchange rates for the USA. It is also the first in the US tourism literature to account for the nature of interactions between the three variables because of innovations in the system.


2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 229-246 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rana Muhammad Adeel-Farooq ◽  
Nor Aznin Abu Bakar ◽  
Jimoh Olajide Raji

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to empirically examine the effects of financial liberalization and trade openness on the economic growth of two countries, namely, Pakistan and India for the period 1985-2014. Design/methodology/approach This study uses the autoregressive distributed lag technique, which allows mixed order of integration. In addition, it uses the principal component method to create an index for financial liberalization to examine how it affects the economic growth of the selected countries. Findings The findings reveal that in the short and long run, trade openness has positive effect on the Pakistan’s economic growth while the financial liberalization has positive impact only in the long run. In the case of India, both financial liberalization and trade openness positively and significantly influence the economic growth in the short and long run. Practical implications By comparing the results of both countries, trade openness and financial liberalization increase the economic growth of India more than that of Pakistan. These results suggest that Pakistan should consider appropriate positive policies regarding financial liberalization and trade openness to achieve high and stable economic growth in the future. Originality/value This study creates financial liberalization index by using the principal component analysis method to explain the role of financial liberalization in the economic growth of Pakistan and India. In addition, it makes comparison of the results based on which country benefits most from the liberalization of trade and financial sectors. Only very few studies have examined these countries, yet their results have remained inconclusive as well.


2015 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 340-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Madhu Sehrawat ◽  
A K Giri

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between financial development and economic growth in India using annual data from 1982 to 2012. Design/methodology/approach – The stationarity properties are checked by ADF, DF-GLS, KPSS and Ng–Perron unit root tests. The long- and short-run dynamics are examined by using the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) approach to co-integration. Findings – The co-integration test confirms a long-run relationship in financial development and economic growth for India. The analysis of ARDL test results reveals that both bank-based and market-based indicators of financial development have a positive impact on economic growth in India. Hence, the results support the supply-leading hypothesis and highlight the importance of financial development in economic growth. The findings also indicate that the Indian bank-centric financial sector has the potential for economic growth through credit transmission. Research limitations/implications – The present study recommends appropriate reforms in financial markets to attain sustainable economic growth. The findings are useful for policy-makers who want to maintain a parallel expansion of financial development and growth. Originality/value – To date, there are hardly any studies that use both market-based and bank-based indicators as proxies of financial development and analyze their role in economic growth in India. So, the contribution of the paper is to fill this gap in literature.


2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 1323-1340
Author(s):  
Waliu Olawale Shittu ◽  
Nor Asmat Ismail ◽  
Abdul Rais Abdul Latiff ◽  
Hammed Oluwaseyi Musibau

Purpose Amongst the major concerns of sub-Sahara Africa are the rising external debt and poor performances in governance. This paper aims to lend a voice to the relevance of governance on the relationship between external debt and economic growth in selected five sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries. Design/methodology/approach Using available data from the World Governance and Development Indicators, between 1996 and 2016, the study uses the fully-modified OLS technique after establishing the absence of unit root and existence of long-run relationship amongst the variables of the model. Findings The findings confirm a non-linear relationship between external debt and economic with a positive net effect of $5.05 increase in economic performance for a US$ rise in external debt. While the index of governance depicts a negative association with economic growth, the indicators show mixed results. The interaction effect of external debt and governance on economic performance explain that improved governance quality reduces its negative effect on economic performance by US$1.288 (with a total effect of –4.180 + 1.288*EXDBT); it equally enhances the (net) positive impact of external debt by US$1.288 (with a total effect 5.05 + 1.288*IQ). Practical implications The governments of the selected countries are, therefore, advised to seek other means of financing their expenditure while curbing financial mismanagement and its long-term impacts on growth. Also, governance infrastructures should be improved to restore both domestic and foreign investors’ confidence so that more private capitals may be attracted in lieu of excessive borrowings. Originality/value The research is the first to comprehensively examine the nexus between external debt, governance and economic growth in the selected countries, given their external debt position in SSA. This includes examining the impacts of each of the governance indicators and the comprehensive index of governance on growth. Furthermore, the study adds to the literature by examining the interaction effects of external debt and governance on economic growth of these countries. This gives both the partial and total estimates of the effects of external debt and governance on economic growth in the countries under consideration.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Clement Olalekan Olaniyi ◽  
Adebayo Adedokun

PurposeThis study examines the moderating effect of institutional quality on the finance-growth nexus in South Africa from 1986 to 2015.Design/methodology/approachThis study adopts unit root tests, cointegration test and autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model.FindingsThe findings reveal that institutional quality constitutes a drain to the growth benefits of financial development (FD) in South Africa in the short-run while FD and institutional quality converge to enhance growth process of the country in the long-run. Also, the threshold of institutional quality beyond which institution stimulates strong positive impact of finance on growth is estimated to be 6.42 on a 10-point scale.Practical implicationsThis study, therefore, suggests that institutional quality matters in the way FD influences economic growth in South Africa. Hence, stakeholders are encouraged to trace and block lapses and loopholes in the institutional framework guiding financial system in South Africa so as to maximize growth benefits of FD.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the extant studies by introducing a country-specific analysis into the empirical examination of how institutional quality influences the impact of FD on economic growth. Also, this study deviates from other studies by determining the threshold of institutional quality beyond which FD stimulates strong positive effect on economic growth in South Africa


2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 344-361 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hillary Chijindu Ezeaku ◽  
Obiamaka P. Egbo ◽  
Ifeoma Nwakoby ◽  
Josaphat U.J. Onwumere

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to assess the relative effectiveness of bilateral and multilateral concessional debts on economic growth in 32 sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries over the period 1985–2016. Design/methodology/approach The recently developed dynamic panel autoregressive distributed lag models which comprise three different estimators, the mean group, pooled mean group (PMG) estimator and dynamic fixed effect, were applied to estimate the model. Following these estimators, the Hausman test was employed to determine the efficient and consistent estimator. Findings The results showed that bilateral concessional debts had a negative impact on growth. From the findings, a 1 percent increase in bilateral concessional debts induced economic growth to decline by 38.1 percent points in the short run, and by 7.1 percent points in the long run; convergence to long-run equilibrium adjusted at the speed of 90 percent on an annual basis. Multilateral concessional debts were found to have a positive impact on growth both in the short and long run. The coefficient of the error term was negatively signed and indicates that deviations from the long-run equilibrium path were being corrected at the speed of 89.4 percent annually. Originality/value To the authors’ best knowledge, empirical studies that specifically seek to examine how bilateral and multilateral concessional debts impacted on growth are yet to attract the attention of researchers. As a result, this study will complement related extant growth studies, especially in the case of SSA.


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