The Impact of Economic Growth on Employment in Nigeria

Abstract

Nigeria has enjoyed a long period of sustained economic growth since 2001 and yet, there is rampant unemployment in the country. There are various studies that have supported that growth is a pathway to employment. Thus, this paper investigated the impact the economic growth in Nigeria had on employment generation. The Johansen vector- Error correction model was used in the investigation. The findings revealed that, although economic growth had positive relationship with employment, the relationship is not significant. Foreign private investment has negative impact while Public expenditure has positive and significant impact on employment. It is concluded that the growth in Nigeria does not support employment. The paper recommended that, growth in the economy can support employment if the government gear expenditure towards areas like labour intensive Industry that can create more employment.
Key words: Public expenditure; Economic growth; Decent work