Conceptualising and evaluating inclusive economic development: a productivity perspective

ABSTRACT Although scholarly attention towards inclusive economic development is emergent, its concept and evaluation remain ambiguous since few attempts have been made to elaborate on its definitions and goals. In this study, we conceptualize and define inclusive economic development, propose a productivity perspective for evaluating it, and construct an inclusive total factor productivity index based on data envelopment analysis. According to the estimation results, we report and map the major findings of our index. The results demonstrate that although inclusive economic development is progressing globally, significant regional disparities persist.