Resilient Human Capital: A Precondition for Structural Transformation

This paper seeks to demonstrate that the education output in its current state does not allow building a resilient human capital in African Least Developed Countries (LDCs). African LDCs are characterized by structural handicaps, including their low level of human capital that prevents them for attaining internationally agreed goals and poverty reduction. Moreover, their moderately good economic growth performance has not resulted in a commensurate reduction in poverty, mostly due to lack of employment opportunities. While the reasons for this low employment creation are diverse and stem from the nature of growth itself (demand side of labour market), on the supply side the mismatch between education profiles and demand by the formal and informal labour market is an important driver. Indeed, the level, quality and content of the predominately primary school output do not meet the requirements of a labour market. Using primary and secondary data on employment in Ethiopia this paper shows that numeracy and literacy skills are not sufficient for employment opportunities and reinforce overall vulnerability.

Year of Publication: 2011
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