Health Status, Labour Productivity and Economic Growth in Nigeria

Abstract

The quest for rapid economic growth and development has pre-occupied the minds of researchers and policy makers most especially in less developed countries. This has resulted to empirical inquiry into the causes of growth in a sustainable term. This study therefore examines the impact of health status and labour productivity on economic growth in Nigeria. By utilizing annual time series data from 1981 to 2017, the study carried out ADF unit root test to ascertain the stationarity of the series. The result confirms that the series were stationary at levels and t first difference, hence, the adoption of ARDL bound test to Co-integration. The empirical estimates of the parameters of the model show that both health status and labour productivity have positive impacts on economic growth in Nigeria. This follows economic theory as expected. A further analysis of the significance of the estimates reveals that health status plays a significant role in Nigerian growth process. However, labour productivity fails to significantly impact on growth episodes in Nigeria. Other variable which stimulates economic growth in the country is gross fixed capital formation. The study therefore recommends a policy framework towards improvement in the quality of labour through adequate funding of education and re-tooling the educational system to enhance labour productivity for a more robust growth of the economy.