Dynamic cost productivity and economies of scale of Ghanaian insurers

Kwaku Ohene-Asare, Jones Kofi Anyimadu Asare, Charles Turkson

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

5 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Previous insurance efficiency studies have focused on cost efficiency or static and dynamic technical productivity and therefore ignored dynamic cost productivity. Previous studies have also failed to consider economies of scale at the firm level. This study employs a panel data of insurers to assess the dynamic cost productivity growth in Ghana from 2005 to 2014. We also explore the determinants of cost productivity growth in the Ghanaian insurance industry. We find that the introduction of the Insurance Act of 2006 saw some large cost productivity growths; however, since 2012 the industry has been facing some marginal cost productivity decline. The cost improving policies in the Act that encouraged cost efficiency must be revisited by regulators, as it seems that the industry is going back to the pre-regulation cost environment. Additionally, not many insurers have been operating at the optimal production scale over the period.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)148-177
Number of pages30
JournalGeneva Papers on Risk and Insurance: Issues and Practice
Volume44
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 16 Jan 2019
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Cost Malmquist Index
  • Data envelopment analysis
  • Economies of scale
  • Insurance firms

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