Human Capital Development and Economic Growth in Nigeria

Abstract

Human capital is an important factor used in converting all resources to mankind's use and benefit. Economists observed that the development and utilization of human capital is important in a nation's economic growth. However, the illiteracy rate in Nigeria is high and many workers are unskilled, leading to their low productivity; hence, this study shows the relevance of human capital development to the growth of the economy. It evaluates human capital development and economic growth in Nigeria by adopting conceptual analytical framework that employs the theoretical and ordinary least square (OLS) to analyze the relationship using the GDP as proxy for economic growth; total government expenditure on education and health, and the enrolment pattern of tertiary, secondary and primary schools as proxy for human capital. The analysis confirms that there is strong positive relationship between human capital development and economic growth. Following the findings, it was recommended that stakeholders need to evolve a more pragmatic means of developing the human capabilities, since it is seen as an important tool for economic growth in Nigeria. Also proper institutional framework should be put in place to look into the manpower needs of the various sectors and implement policies that will lead to the overall growth of the economy.

Keywords: Human capital, Economic growth, Education, Productivity, Youth empowerment