HUMAN CAPITAL DEVELOPMENT AND THE ECONOMIC GROWTH IN NIGERIA
ABSTRACT
This study examined and analyzed the impact of human capital development on the economic growth in Nigeria, using time series data of 32 years spanning 1980 to 2012, data utilized for the study were extracted from secondary sources i.e. journals and publications, CBN and NBS. The Ordinary Least Square Regression technique was used to estimate the parameters of the model. Empirical results show that human capital development, in line with theory, exhibits significant positive impact on output level. This implies that human capital development is indispensable in the achievement of sustainable economic growth in Nigeria, as there is an increase in economic performance for every increase in human capital development. Based on the estimated regression and a descriptive statistical analysis of trends of government commitment to human capital development, it was found that the development of the human component of resources of Nigeria is crucial to economic growth and hence the urgent need for the Nigerian government to increase the funding of education and health, as this will result to a rapid growth of the Nigerian economy.