scholarly journals A contribution to the human capital investment debate vis-à-vis economic growth: the case for Nigeria

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-28
Author(s):  
Lasbrey ANOCHIWA ◽  

Purpose: Human capital development is essentially vital in enhancing economic growth and Nigeria needs to grow. This study investigates the contribution of human capital to growth in Nigeria. Research methodology: We have disaggregated the article's variables into different models, for a better result. We employed the Autoregressive Distribution Lag (ARDL) framework to examine the relationship between the variables. E-views software was used as applied in Akbari, Chude and Chude (2013). Result: The result shows that there exists a long-run relationship between the human capital indices, education and health in Nigeria and economic growth. Though the coefficient is positive but has a statistically insignificant relationship with human capital development and economic growth. Limitation: The study was hindered by the availability of data. Contribution: It is satisfactory to know from the study that human capital is still relevant in explaining growth in Nigeria. Keywords: Human capital, Economic growth, Development

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sanderson Abel ◽  
Nyasha Mhaka ◽  
Pierre Le Roux

This study empirically examined the relationship between human capital development and economic growth in Zimbabwe for the period 1980 to 2015, using time series analysis techniques of co-integration, error correction model, and Granger causality tests. The study was motivated by changes which have characterised the financing of human capital since the country attained independence. A decade after independence, the government was able to adequately finance the social sectors; however, thereafter government financing has been declining since the adoption of the structural adjustment programme. The findings of this study indicate the existence of a short-run and long-run relationship between human capital development and economic growth in Zimbabwe. On the direction and significance of the relationship, the result is mixed. Human capital development, proxied by government expenditure on health, had a significant positive impact on economic growth—both in the short run and the long run—reaffirming that a healthy labour force will be more productive and efficient. Human capital development, proxied by government expenditure on education, was found to negatively impact economic growth in the long run. In conclusion, a positive relationship between human capital development and economic growth in Zimbabwe was found, although the relationship is weak.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Attahir Babaji Abubakar ◽  
Ahmad Sani Bala ◽  
Abdullahi Aliyu Musa

Abstract This study examined the effect of human capital development on the economic growth of Nigeria. In achieving this, the human capital variables of education and health care were included in the study. The study employed the Autoregressuve and Distributive Lag (ARDL) model to annual series covering the period 1983 to 2018 for analysis. The findings of the study revealed the presence of a long-run association among the stuady variables. Further, it was discovered that in both the short and long run, both components of human capital development produce a positive effect on economic growth, although the effect of education appeared to be larger. The study emphasized the need for policymakers to enhance both access to and quality of health care and education with a view to stimulating the economic growth of Nigeria.


2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 26-35
Author(s):  
Kunofiwa Tsaurai

This paper investigates the relationship between human capital development and foreign direct investment (FDI). In particular, the direction of causality between these two variables is the main focus of this study. This study has been necessitated by the failure by many previous researchers to concur on the causal relationship between FDI and human capital development. Some authors argue that there is a uni-directional causality relationship running from FDI to human capital development whilst others are saying the causality runs the other way round from human capital development to FDI. The other group of authors says there is a bi-directional relationship between these two variables whilst the fourth and last group of authors maintains that there exist no causal relation at all between FDI and human capital development. Using the lagged error correction model (ECM), the study observed that FDI measured by FDI, net inflows (% of GDP) was Granger caused by human capital development (proxied by pupil-teacher ratio) both in the short and long run. However, the null hypothesis which says that FDI Granger caused human capital development was rejected both in the short and long run. The author therefore recommends the intensification of teacher-pupil ratio improvement programmes in order not only to increase FDI inflow but to ensure Austria benefits from that increased FDI inflow


2017 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 275-290 ◽  
Author(s):  
Themba G. Chirwa ◽  
Nicholas M. Odhiambo

In this article, the key macroeconomic determinants of economic growth in Zambia are investigated using the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) bounds testing approach. The study has been motivated by the unsustainable growth trends that Zambia has been experiencing in recent years. Our study finds that the key macroeconomic determinants that are significantly associated with economic growth in Zambia include, amongst others, investment, human capital development, government consumption, international trade and foreign aid. The study’s results reveal that in the short run, investment and human capital development are positively associated with economic growth, while government consumption, international trade and foreign aid are negatively associated with economic growth. However, in the long run, the study finds investment and human capital development to be positively associated with economic growth, while only foreign aid is negatively associated with economic growth. These results have significant policy implications. They imply that short–run economic policies should focus on creating incentives that attract investment and increase the quality of education, the effectiveness of government institutions, the promotion of international trade reforms and the effectiveness of development aid. In the long run, development strategies should focus on attracting the accumulation of long-term investment, improving the quality of education and the effectiveness of development aid.


Author(s):  
Martins Iyoboyi

The paper investigates the relative impact of human capital development on economic rejuvenation and growth in Nigeria form 1981 to 2010, using the bounds testing approach to cointegration. The study utilized a combined proxy of education and health to capture the influence of human capital on growing and consequently rejuvenating an economy. Fixed capital and human capital were found to be positively associated with economic growth in both the short and long run, while Granger-causing economic growth in the period of study, implying the imperatives of using them to rejuvenate an economy. The stability of the coefficients of the estimated model is confirmed by the CUSUM and CUSUMSQ tests. The paper showed that for Nigeria’s economic rejuvenation and long-term stable growth, emphasis should be placed on deliberately developing the country’s vast human resources.


2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdul Olatunji Shobande ◽  
Charles Etukomeni

Abstract The role which financing human development plays in fostering the sectorial growth of an economy cannot be undermined. It is a key instrument which can be utilized to alleviate poverty, create employment and ensure the sustenance of economic growth and development. Thus financing human development for sectorial growth has taken the center stage of economic growth and development strategies in most countries. In a constructive effort to examine the in-depth relationship between the variables in the Nigerian space, this paper provides evidence on the impact of financing human development and sectorial growth in Nigeria between 1982 and 2016, using the Johansen co-integration techniques to test for co-integration among the variables and the Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) to ascertain the speed of adjustment of the variables to their long run equilibrium position. The analysis shows that a long and short run relationship exists between financing human capital development and sectorial growth during the period reviewed. Therefore, the paper argues that for an active foundation for sustainable sectorial growth and development, financing human capital development across each unit is urgently required through increased budgetary allocation for both health and educational sectors since they are key components of human capital development in a nation.


2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 523 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammed Shuaibu ◽  
Popoola Timothy Oladayo

Africa is regarded as the least developed continent in terms of overall development and specifically in terms of human capital development (HCD) efforts. Research on the determinants of HCD in Africa is scanty, as the literature is dominated by country-specific studies as well as group of country studies that primarily focus on the effect of human capital on growth and other economic development parameters. Therefore, this paper investigates the determinants of human capital development in 33 African countries over a 14-year period from 2000 to 2013. The empirical analysis is predicated on Sen’s capability approach that was modified following Binder and Georgiadis (2011) in order to explicitly account for the role of health, infrastructure and institutions as potential drivers of HCD. This is a departure from previous studies that focused primarily on the role of education. In addition to preliminary tests such as line plot, descriptive statistics and correlation analysis carried out, the data is analysed using panel unit root, co-integration and causality techniques. Findings show that all the variables are integrated of order one while HCD and its determinants have a stable long-run equilibrium relationship. Specifically, all the variables significantly influence HCD in the long run, whereas the contemporaneous models suggest that only institutions matter. Utilizing alternative estimators as well as estimation of subsamples, robustness tests reinforce our findings. Therefore, African governments may consider supporting HCD through sustained investment in the education and health sectors. At the same time, short-term gains may be attained through enhanced institutional quality and infrastructure development.


2018 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 405-415 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rajesh Sharma ◽  
Pradeep Kautish ◽  
D. Suresh Kumar

Due to the socio-economic, infrastructural and governance peculiarities, identification of key macroeconomic factors determining the economic growth in developing countries becomes a complicated case. The present study attempts to assess the impact of foreign aid, government consumption expenditure, foreign direct investment, trade openness, exchange rate, human capital development, and inflation on economic growth in India by using yearly data for the period of 46 years, that is, from 1971 to 2016. An autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) bounds model enables to examine the short-run and long-run impact of selected determinants on economic growth during the study period. The outcomes of the study find that in the long run, foreign aid, the government’s final consumption expenditure and foreign direct investment have a positive and significant impact on economic growth, whereas, economic growth has been negatively influenced by exchange rate and human capital development. Contrary to the long run, foreign aid has a negative and significant impact on economic growth in the short run. The short-run outcomes show that all the selected macroeconomic determinants have either negative or positive influence on economic growth. To ensure the long-run economic growth, besides regulating the exchange rate fluctuations, policies related to export -import and human capital development need to be re-examined.


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-83
Author(s):  
Myroslava Olievska ◽  
Arthur Romanov

The purposes of the article are to assess the impact of financing of education and health to human capital development, to consider the relationship among wages and investment in human capital, to establish directions of improvement of the investments in human capital development in Ukraine and other lower-middle-income countries. Methodology. Methodological basis of the research is the study of the dynamics of such indicators as the Human Capital Index 2020, wages, GNI per capita, education expenditure, government expenditure, financing of health, the wages of full-time employees. To solve the problems arising from the purpose of the study, systemic method (when analyzing the relationship of the investments in human capital development and wages), statistical methods of comparisons, economic analysis (when processing statistics), historical method (in the study of the evolution of Human Capital Index, expenditures on health and education), empirical and correlation-regression analysis (in the analysis of the practice of investments in human capital development) have been used. Results. The human capital is a central driver of sustainable growth and poverty reduction. The article proves that high-income countries can better finance the development of human capital; they are the leaders of the Ukraine Index 2020, more human capital in high-income countries is associated with higher earnings for people, higher income for countries, and stronger cohesion in societies. At the same time, the article substantiates that the low level of GNI per capita (3370 USD in Ukraine) and insufficient level of education and health expenditure negatively affect formation of human capital (the 53rd place in the Human Capital Index 2020). On the basis of the study of government and non-government expenditure on education and health, it has been concluded that investments in human capital are the effective tool to increase of the wages of full-time employees. Practical implications. Today human capital gains in many countries are at risk, especially in lower-middle-income countries. Features of the current socioeconomic situation require strengthening of investments in human capital development. The main steps that are necessary to undertake for implementing changes in the investments in human capital development have been determined in the article. They are the following: optimization of state financing of human capital; creation of fiscal space; creation of regional funds for financing human capital development; creation of strategic alliances and partnerships; supporting the demand for education and health care from households. Value/originality. The relationships between investments in human capital development and wages in the lower-middle-income countries are analytically proved. The complex of actions on optimization of financing of human capital has been generalized.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 553-561
Author(s):  
Asen Ayange ◽  
Udo Emmanuel Samuel Abner ◽  
Ishaku Prince ◽  
Victor Ndubuaku

Purpose of study: This study examines security expenditure as an economically contributive or a non-contributive expenditure on human capital development and economic growth in Nigeria. Methodology: Adopting the ARDL bounds test and Error Correction Model (ECM) on quarterly time-series data from January 2010-December 2018. Result: The findings and results indicate that security expenditure is economically a contributive expenditure. In the long-run a positive and significant impact on economic growth and human capital development, in the shot-run a negative relationship. The ECM model conveyed the speed of convergence from disequilibrium in the short-run back to long-run equilibrium by 86% quarterly. Implication/Application: The finding and results have critical implications for the government and policymakers, protection of life, properties, economic, and business assets positively stimulate economic growth. A unit increase in government expenditure on human capital development decreases insecurity and increase economic growth. Novelty/Originality of this study: Previous studies conducted globally and in Nigeria reported diverse results on the co-integrating relationship between security expenditure and economic growth, using diverse variables and annualized time series data predominantly. This study differs from the previous studies to adopt quarterly time-series data, the ARDL, and the ECM models as the major techniques of analysis along with a battery of pre-test and diagnostic tests.  


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