Authors: Adebayo B. Aromolaran
January 2004
Yale University Economic Growth Center Discussion Paper No. 879
Abstract:
Economists have argued that increasing female schooling positively influences the labor supply of married women by inducing a faster rise in market productivity relative to non-market productivity. I use the Nigerian Labor Force Survey to investigate how own and husband’s schooling affect women’s labor market participation. I find that additional years of postsecondary education increases wage market participation probability by as much as 15.2%. A marginal increase inprimary schooling has no effect on probability of wage employment, but could enhance participation rates in self-employment by about 5.40%. These effects are likely to be stronger when a woman is married to a more educated spouse. The results suggest that primary education is more productive in non-wage work relative to wage work, while postsecondary education is more productive in wage work. Finally, I find evidence suggesting that non-market work may not be a normal good for married women in Nigeria.
Keywords: Nigeria, Female Schooling, Women’s Labor Market Participation, Non-Market Productivity
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