FEMALE LABOUR PARTICIPATION AND ECONOMIC GROWTH IN NIGERIA
1ADOFU, I & 1OKWANYA, I
1Department of Economics, Federal University of Lafia, Nasarawa State
Correspondence Author’s E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Abstract
The International Labour Organization (ILO) indicates that female labour force participation rate in Nigeria has been growing in recent years. Given this assertion, this study examined the effect of the growth in female labour force on economic growth in Nigeria between 1985-2016. Unit root and ARDL bound tests were used to determine whether the growth in female labour force and economic growth are stationary and co-integrated. The study also used the Dynamic Ordinary Least Square (DOLS) model and the Granger causality test to assess the impact of the growth in female labour on economic growth and determined the causal relationship between the variables respectively. The results of the study showed that growth in female labour has a negative and significant effect on economic growth in Nigeria and that there exists a unidirectional causality that runs from growth in female labour to economic growth. The findings suggest that policies geared towards improving the productivity of female labour in Nigeria should be encouraged so as to improve their contribution to growth.
Key words: Female Labour, Male Labour, Economic Growth, DOLS, Productivity, Nigeria.