Trade Facilitation and Unemployment in Nigeria (Published)
This study examined the impact of trade facilitation on unemployment in Nigeria from 1985 to 2022. Trade facilitation was measured using trade openness, foreign direct investment (FDI), real exchange rate, and official development assistance, while unemployment was measured by the unemployment rate. An ex-post facto research design was used, relying on annual time series data from the Central Bank of Nigeria. Data analysis included descriptive statistics, trend analysis, ADF unit root test, bounds cointegration test, and ARDLFindings showed a long-run relationship among the variables. Trade openness and FDI had a significant negative effect on unemployment in both the short and long run. Real exchange rate had a positive but non-significant effect, while official development assistance had a negative and significant effect in the short run and a negative, non-significant effect in the long run.The study concluded that trade facilitation helps reduce unemployment in Nigeria. It recommended that the government promote trade openness in labour-intensive sectors and support SMEs in accessing global markets to boost job creation.
Keywords: Exchange Rate, Investment, Labour, Nigeria, Time Series, Unemployment
THE ROLE OF FENCING ON MARGINAL PRODUCTIVITY OF LABOUR, LAND AND CAPITAL IN ASAL REGIONS OF KENYA (Published)
Good land management strategies are known to play an important role in improving agricultural production. There lacks empirical studies that have evaluated the contribution of fence as a productive investment in Kenya. Fencing was treated as a productive input in the production function alongside capital, labour and land. Cross-sectional primary data is used to achieve the objectives of the study. The Cobb-Douglas (CD) specification was used in measuring the contribution of fence to production and in measuring its role in the marginal productivity of labour, land and capital in semi arid Kenya. Ordinary least squares (OLS) regression results indicated that fencing improves agricultural production and that it improves the marginal productivity of land. The policy implication is that since fence has led to a series of positive benefits, there is need for the government to recognize the positive impact of fence and empower those communities who would wish to fence their land.
Keywords: ASAL regions, Kenya, Labour, fencing, land and capital, marginal productivity