Technological absorption as a growth strategy among indigenous African firms: A resource-based perspective

Date

2021-07-01

Advisors

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Inderscience

Type

Article

Peer reviewed

Yes

Abstract

Technology absorption has become an important driving force for firm competition, strategy and survival. Consequently, the capacity of African firms to absorb the right technology has dominated the contemporary discourse on the performance of African firms. Drawing on the resource-based view (RBV) theory and employing ordinary least squares regression model (OLS), we investigated the impact of human capital, access to credit, and electricity on the technology absorption capacity of African firms. Our evidence suggests that technology absorption in practice has the potential to increase performance. Nevertheless, a broad access to credit, electricity, and effective human capital development, we argue, accounts for the differential performance of African firms in developing technology absorption capacity. While education quality in promoting technology absorption in Africa is essential, governance structures do not seem to support the same. We conclude by delineating relevant implications of our study for policy and practice of technology absorption in Africa.

Description

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.

Keywords

Africa, credit, electricity, human capital, technology absorption

Citation

Atiase, V.Y, Dzansi, D.Y. and Ameh, J.K. (2021) Technological absorption as a growth strategy among indigenous African firms: A resource-based perspective. International Journal of Technology Transfer and Commercialisation, 18 (2), pp 207-229

Rights

Research Institute