The productivity within the framework of the endogenous development approach: Application to the case of the Local Productive System of Ksar-Hellal (Tunisia)

The new configuration productive do not consider any more the space as a source of costs and as a passive support of productive factors but, it replaces it by the concept of territory, where its organization, its socio-economic and institutional characteristics, play an active role. This article aims to verify the hypothesis which assumes that the territory is a windfall for the productivity of the agglomerated companies. Indeed, by application to the Local Productive System (LPS) of Ksar-Hellal, it turned out that the specific resources of the territory can be in the service of agglomerated companies, but it is not necessary that they participate together in their productive efficiency, and in the institution of an endogenous dynamics of development. In addition, the analysis proved that social relationships play an unimportant role in the productive performances of the concentrated companies, putting into question the theoretical hypotheses, which consider the relevance of the role of the extraeconomic processes. Therefore, the assumption that all the specific resources of the country are responsible for the productivity of agglomerated firms should be allowed with some caution. There is no guarantee that the concentrated companies of LPS enjoy all the economic and social benefits of their territorial base. The agglomerated companies can take profit by exploiting their economic factors, while ignoring the informal aspects.