Productivity and Innovation in the Moroccan Chemical Industry (2002-2013)[Productivité et innovation dans l’industrie chimique marocaine (2002-2013)]

The total factor productivity is one of the producer performance indicators. In the chemical industries, innovation and R&D enter as a production factor, and constitute an intangible capital with its own return. The present study aims to test the effect of innovation on the chemical industries productivity during the period of 2002-2013, given its importance and the growing interest on it as part of the Industrial Acceleration Plan 2014-2020. The model adopted in the study follows the same phases mentioned by Crépon, Duguet and Mairesse. The estimation results show that the research-development is influenced in opposed signs by the Schumpeterian forces of innovation, namely the size (negatively) and the market concentration (positively), that the research-development return generated by innovation output is positive although the size affects negatively the innovation, and that the innovation return with respect to productivity is relatively low although controlled by the interaction terms (openness/concentration and openness/innovation). The study empirical implications feature econometrical implications as well as future paths of research.