Labour Migration, Remittances and Economic Growth in Nigeria: An Indirect Least Square Approach

International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation (IJRSI) | Volume VI, Issue VIII, August 2019 | ISSN 2321–2705

Labour Migration, Remittances and Economic Growth in Nigeria: An Indirect Least Square Approach

Abidemi ABIOLA PhD

Department of Economics, Ajayi Crowther University, Oyo, Oyo State, Nigeria

Abstract: – Labour migration is one major factor in determining the status of a given economy. The reason is two-fold; the brain drain effect on the economy which is always considered detrimental and the capital inflow into the economy which is always considered as injection into the economy. To resolve the puzzle of cross purpose implications of labour migration on the Nigerian economy, the study decided to examine the impact of labour migration and remittances on the Nigerian economy. Two models were specified. One that examines the impacts of factors that lead to emigration on emigration. The second that examine the impact of labour migration and remittances on economic growth. Being a study that involves times series, unit roots test that was conducted shows the variable of emigration and labour age are stationary at level. The result of the labour migration model shows that all the explanatory variables are positively related to labour migration. The second model also follow suit. The indirect least square estimates show that age, remittances and population exert positive influence on economic growth.The study recommends on the strength of its finding that Nigerian government should provide an enabling environment for its emigrants, so that administrative bottlenecks associated with traveling abroad are reduced to the barest minimum. The government should also provide economic environment that will encourage Nigerians in diaspora to come and invest their hard earned foreign currency to develop the domestic economy.

Keywords: Labour, Migration, Remittances, Economic growth and ILS

JEL Codes: C51, E22 and F21

I. INTRODUCTION

Migration of people in whatever form and for any reason is dated as far back as the existence of human beings. People migrate from rural to urban centres, from one urban centre to another centre, from one country to another. Most people often try to equate migration with labour migration or labour mobility, however a clear distinction between migration and labour migration is imperative. While labour mobility is a subset of labour migration, labour migration is a subset of migration. In a clearer sense, the major distinction between labour migration and migration is found in the distinction between voluntary migration and forced or involuntary migration.

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