HUMAN CAPITAL DEVELOPMENT: ITS IMPLICATIONS ON THE NIGERIAN ECONOMY

ABSTRACT

This study investigates the implications of Human capital development on the Nigerian Economy. This study takes a retrospective look at the state and level of the educational sector and its resultant effect on the nation's economic state. With over 200 million people, youths accounting for over 60 percent, Nigeria, the most populous black nation in the world is termed 'the country of the young'. But how has she faired in the development of her young? With over 20 million children deprived of education, and rising unemployment rate, massive brain drain to developed and even neighboring countries, of what impact are these staggering statistics on Nigeria? These are some of the issues this study looks into. The test of stationarity was carried out using the Augmented Dickey Fuller test (ADF) and the Vector error correction mechanism used in the analysis of data. Data for this study were sourced from the World Bank database, the central bank of Nigeria statistical bulletin and national bureau of statistics. The sample period for this study was from 1991 to 2020. The study suggests an improvement in Government allocation to Education which has been meager over the years, to at least 15 to 20 percent of the National budget in accordance with the UNESCO benchmark. In conclusion, the economic strength of a nation depends largely on the quality of her human resource. Nigeria indeed has been blessed with a virile population but has not done so well in the development of this human resource. This study looks at the effect this has had over time on the economy, what can be done to change the status quo, and the gains to be expected from a developed human capital.