Privatization: theory and evidence

Abstract

Privatisation is very much the flavour of the day. Many enthusiasts of privatisation seem to believe that a shift from public to private ownership will automatically make for improved performance. Yet there is little in economic theory or the empirical evidence on privatisation that lends support to such a simplistic belief. The evidence on the impact of privatisation is by no means unmixed. In particular, in less developed countries, where law enforcement and corporate governance tend to be weak, private ownership does not necessarily make for better performance. It is possible, based on the research on privatisation, to draw some tentative conclusions for privatisation policy in a context such as ours