Article Sidebar

Submitted
August 31, 2023
Published
December 28, 2023
Download
Download PDF
Statistic
Read Counter : 474

Main Article Content

Abstract

This study empirically investigated the effect of human capital flights on economic growth in Nigeria from 1981 to 2020. It used recent advances in time series analysis, which are fractional integration and co-integration framework. The net migration rate and remittance were used to capture human capital flight. The results show that shocks and spikes in human capital flight variables have a lasting effect. However, the Hausman test of fractional co-integration revealed that a long-run relationship does not exist between human capital flight and economic growth. This may be due to an increasing youth population and an abundant labor market. Therefore, this study eases the fear of a detrimental human capital flight on Nigeria’s economic growth over the study period and does not find evidence of a gain through remittances. Hence, the government should facilitate the productive use of migrant remittances by improving financial literacy, encouraging investment in productive assets, and providing a favorable environment for small enterprises.

Keywords

Human capital flight economic growth fractional co-integration Nigeria

Article Details

Author Biographies

Adetutu Omotola Habib, Babcock University, Nigeria

Habib Adetutu is a Grant Writer and Assitant Lecturer at Research, Innovation and International Cooperation, Babcock University, Nigeria. She holds a Master's degree in Economics and her research interest spans across human capital development and economic policy.

Awolaja Oladapo, Babcock University

Dr. Awolaja Oladapo (ORCID Nos. 0000-0003-3047-4867) is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Economics at Babcock University, Nigeria. He has over 15 years of teaching experience. His research interests are macroeconomics, public sector economics, environmental economics, and financial economics.

How to Cite
Habib, A. O., & Oladapo, A. (2023). Human Capital Flight and Economic Growth in Nigeria. Pan-African Journal of Education and Social Sciences, 4(2). Retrieved from https://journals.aua.ke/pajes/article/view/404
Download Citation
Endnote/Zotero/Mendeley (RIS)
BibTeX

References

  1. Adela, S., & Dietmar, M. (2016). Remittances and their impact on Economic Growth. Journal for Social Science,12(2), 12-15.
  2. Adeosun, O.T. & Popogbe, O.O., (2020). Population growth and human resource utilization nexus in Nigeria. Journal of Humanities and Applied Social Sciences, 4(3), 281-298. https://doi.org/10.1108/JHASS-06-2020-0088
  3. Ajide, K.B. & Alimi, O.Y. (2018). Political instability and migrants’ remittances into Sub-Saharan Africa region. Geo Journal, 84(6), 1657-1675.
  4. Aravossitas, T. & Sugiman, M. (2019). From brain drain to brain gain: New Greek migration to Canada and implications for the community, in J. A. Panagiotopoulou, L. Rosen, C. Kirsch, & A. Chatzidaki (Eds), 'New' migration of families from Greece to Europe and Canada: A 'New' Challenge for Education (pp. 33-56). Springer VS.
  5. Akinkuotu, E. (2019, April 24). Doctors free to leave Nigeria, we have enough-Ngige. The Punch Newspaper. https://punchng.com/doctors-free-to-leave-nigeria-we-have-enough-ngige/
  6. Bareke, M. L., Agezew, B. H., Dedho, N. H., Lebeta, M. F., Demissie, M. M., Yimer, B. M., Herut, A. H. (2021). Determinants of human capital development in Ethiopia: implications to education policy. Education Research International, 2021, 1-10.
  7. Beine, M. A., Docquier, F., & Schiff, M. (2008). Brain drain and its determinants: A major issue for small states. Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA), 3398.
  8. Bredtmann, J., Martínez, F. & Otten, S. (2019). Remittances and the brain drain: Evidence from microdata for Sub-Saharan Africa. The Journal of Development Studies, 55(7), 1455-1476.
  9. Bouhari, M., & Soussi, M. (2017). About Relationship between education, investment and growth: identification and causality for 5 MENA Countries - (Algeria-Egypt- Morocco-Tunisia and Turkey). Business and Economics Journal, 8(2), 1-13.
  10. Castles, S. (2009). Development and migration or migration and development: What comes first? Global Perspective and African Experiences. Theoria: A Journal of Social and Political Theory, 56(121), 1–31. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41802453
  11. Choi, I., & Chung, B. S. (1995). Sampling frequency and the power of tests for a unit root: A simulation study. Economics Letters, 49(2), 131-136.
  12. de Haas, H. (2010). Migration and development: A theoretical perspective. International Migration Review, 44(1), 227-264. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1747-7379.2009.00804.x
  13. Egbefo, D.O. (2014).Human capital flight and the developmental problem in Africa. SAU Journal of Humanities, 2 (1/2), 1-18.
  14. Egbulonu, K. G., & Ajudua, A. (2017). Determinants of economic growth in Nigeria: A macroeconomic approach. International Journal of Innovative Finance and Economics Research, 5(1), 22-33.
  15. Emeghara, E. E. (2013). Brain drain as a clog in the wheel of Nigeria’s development: The university education system in focus. International Journal of Development and Management Review (INJODEMAR) 8 (1), 110-121.
  16. Engle, R. F., & Granger, C. W. (1987).Co-integration and error correction: Representation, estimation, and testing. Econometrica: Journal of the Econometric Society, 251-276.
  17. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), (2017).The future of food and agriculture: Trends and challenges, Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations.
  18. Gibson, J., & McKenzie, D. (2012). The economic consequences of ‘brain drain’ of the best and brightest: Microeconomic evidence from five countries. The Economic Journal, 122(560), 339-375.
  19. Imafidon, J. (2018).One way traffic: Nigeria’s medical brain drain. A challenge for maternal health and public health system in Nigeria? University of California, Los Angeles.
  20. Njoroge-Krüger, G. W. (2015). Brain drain vs brain gain: How can brain drain in Kenya be reversed to brain gain? (Bachelor’s thesis, University of Twente).
  21. Leybourne, S. J., & Newbold, P. (2003). Spurious rejections by cointegration tests induced by structural breaks. Applied Economics, 35(9), 1117-1121.
  22. Loto, M. A., & Alao, A. A. (2016). Remittances and the growth of the Nigerian economy. Ethiopian Journal of Business and Economics (The), 6(2), 209-232.
  23. Obiezu, E. X. (2019). The unpacked luggage: The story of African migration and migrants. Journal of African Studies and Sustainable Development, 2(4).
  24. Odionye, J. C., & Emerole, O.B. (2015). The impact of international remittances on the Nigerian economy. British Journal of Economics, Management &Trade,7(1): 1-9.
  25. Ojo, O. D., Ugochukwu, N. O. A., & Obinna, E. J. (2011). Understanding the escalation of brain drain in Nigeria from poor leadership point of view. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, 2(3), 434-453.
  26. Okafor, C., & Chimereze, C. (2020). Brain drain among Nigerian nurses: Implications to the migrating nurse and the home country. International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation, 7(1), 15-21.
  27. Onyekwere, J., & Egenuka, N. (2019, March 29). Nigeria groans as medical professionals’ emigration worsens. Guardian Newspapers. https://guardian.ng/news/nigeria-groans as-medical-professionals-emigration-worsens/
  28. Marinucci, D., & Robinson, P. M. (2001). Semiparametric fractional cointegration analysis. Journal of Econometrics, 105(1), 225-247.
  29. Massey, D. S., Arango, J., Hugo, G., Kouaouci, A., Pellegrino, A., & Taylor, J. E. (1993). Theories of international migration: A review and appraisal. Population and Development Review, 431-466.
  30. Pew Research Center, (2018). https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2018/03/22/at-least-a-million-sub-saharan-africans-moved-to-europe-since-2010/
  31. Popogbe, O. &Adeosun, O.T. (2020). Empirical analysis of the push factors of human capital flight in Nigeria. Journal of Humanities and Applied Social Sciences, 4(13-20. https://doi.org/10.1108/JHASS-07-2020-0093
  32. Raji A. A., Joel A., Ebenezer J.T., & Emmanuel Y.A. (2018). Effect of brain drain on economic development of developing countries: Evidence from selected African countries. Journal of Health and Social Issues (JOHESI), 7(2), 66-76.
  33. Robinson, P. M., & Yajima, Y. (2002). Determination of cointegrating rank in fractional systems. Journal of Econometrics, 106(2), 217-241.
  34. Romer, P. M. (1990). Endogenous technological change. Journal of Political Economy, 98(5), S71–S102.
  35. Sharipov, I. (2015).Contemporary economic growth models and theories: A literature review. CES Working Papers, 7(3), 759.
  36. Tabassum, S., Quddoos, A., Yaseen, M.R. & Sardar, A. (2017).The relationship between capital flight, labor migration and economic growth. European Online Journal of Natural and Social Sciences, 6(4), 594.
  37. Taylor, A. L., & Dhillon, I. S. (2011). The WHO global code of practice on the international recruitment of health personnel: The evolution of global health diplomacy.
  38. United Nations, World Economic Situation and Prospects: October 2017 Briefing, No. 107, (2017). https://www.un.org/development/desa/dpad/publication/world-economic-situation-and-prospects-october-2017-briefing-no-107/
  39. Yamin, A.B. & Luna, F. (2016). Brain drain, the consequence of globalization and future development: a study on Bangladesh. Journal of Economics and Sustainable Development, 7(6), 24-28.