Determinants of Labour Force Participation in Nigeria: The Role of Expansion in Tertiary Education and Internet

Abstract

The aim of this study is to examine the determinants of labour force participation in Nigeria. The Fully Modified OLS was used to investigate the relationship between labour force participation rate and, life expectancy rate, trade openness, education (% secondary), education (% tertiary), labour tax wedge, dummy variable for era of expansion tertiary education in Nigeria, ratio of service to industry, and number of internet users from 1990 to 2021. The series were tested for the stationarity with ADF and the results showed that all the series were stationary at first difference. The Johansen cointegration technique was employed to examine the existence of long run relationship among the series and the result showed the existence of six cointegration equation among the series. The findings of the study showed that life expectancy rate, internet, and the interaction of tertiary education, dummy variable for the expansion of tertiary education in Nigeria and internet contribute significantly to labour force participation in Nigeria. The authors concluded that expansion in tertiary education combined with access to internet is a necessity for labour force participation in Nigeria. The authors therefore recommended that there should be improvement in social infrastructure as to enhance good living conditions among the population; thereby, increase their lifespan. In addition, the recent investment in ICT should be sustained in order to ensure that great numbers of Nigerians, especially students have access to internet. Lastly, the government can liberalise the economy to give room for foreign investors’ involvement in manufacturing of ICT infrastructure and accessories.