Exports as a new paradigm to connect business and information technology for sustainable development

Abstract

With efficient and effective access to information technology, exports could be the best solution for businesses to tackle climate change through “learning by exporting” for sustainable development. With this context as reference, this study uses the directional distance function and the Malmquist–Luenberger Productivity Index (MLPI) to analyze the “green” total factor productivity (GTFP) growth of exporting firms in India by comparing them with non-exporting firms from 2012 to 2020. The finding reveals that, on average, GTFP growth is higher for the exporting firms (7.9%) as compared to non-exporting firms (-0.7%)—the “learning by exporting” effect exists in India, and exports could help Indian firms tackle climate change. Moreover, the decomposition of the MLPI shows that technical change (TC) is the main driver of GTFP in both exporting and non-exporting groups—IT or technological innovation leads to an increase in environmental productivity. Furthermore, the Tobit model is used to analyze the main drivers of TC that promote the GTFP in both groups. The results show that the product innovation (0.61%) has exerted a remarkable positive effect on promoting the GTFP of exporting firms and the human capital quality (0.57%) in non-exporting firms. Based on these findings, we propose that Indian policymakers “prudently” implement more field-oriented or performance-oriented policies for firms through promotional policies, such as tax incentives, while also encouraging the adoption of innovative technology for more effective mitigation of climate change for sustainable development.

Keywords

• Climate change
• Exporting/non-exporting firms
• MLPI
• GTFP growth
• Information technology
• Sustainable development