THE ROLES OF INTENSIVE AND EXTENSIVE EXPORT DIVERSIFICATION ON ECONOMIC GROWTH AND FEMALE LABOR FORCE PARTICIPATION

Author

Wafa Naif S Binmahfuth, Southern Illinois University CarbondaleFollow

Date of Award

5-1-2023

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Department

Economics

First Advisor

Morshed, AKM Mahbub

Abstract

This dissertation is divided into three chapters, and each focuses on export diversification, a crucial economic issue, particularly for emerging nations. In the first chapter, we examine the role of intensive and extensive export diversification in the macroeconomy, and thus we analyze the effects of different forms of export diversification on economic growth, growth volatility, and export volatility. We use cross-section and time series techniques for our panel data set from 118 countries for the period 1970 to 2019. We analyzed the impact and nature of the relationship between export diversification and economic growth by employing the system Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) estimation technique and export diversification measured by the Theil index, and we find that export diversification has a positive and significant effect on economic growth. In the second chapter, we examine the effects of export diversification on female labor force participation (FLFP) using data from 118 countries over the period (1990-2019). We also focus on what type of export diversification increases employment opportunities for women in developing and emerging economies. We find that the introduction of new products in the export basket (extensive export diversification) imparts stronger effects on female labor force participation. In the third chapter, we examine the macroeconomic performances of the KSA and the UAE focusing on the roles of export diversification. It is observed that the UAE made significant progress in diversifying its export basket compared to that of the KSA. Even during the 1990s, these two-dominant oil-producing countries were very close in terms of export concentration. The two countries are geographically and historically similar, but the UAE moved in a different direction in diversifying its economy in 2000 while the KSA has recently taken steps to promote export diversification in order to achieve stable economic growth. This suggests that a comparison of KSA and UAE growth performance over the 1990-2019 period would inform us about the growth and export diversification relationship. We find that the KSA can benefit more from the introduction of more goods/services to its export basket than the UAE.