PUBLIC EXPENDITURE AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT INDEX IN NIGERIA

Abstract

This study determined the effect of government expenditure on human capital index, using government spending on education and health care as the independent variables spanning from 1999 to 2023. The descriptive statistics was used to analyze the data, and multiple regression analysis was employed to test the hypotheses. From the results, the study found that government spending on education has a significant effect on human capital index in Nigeria, while the government spending on health has no significant effect on human capital index in Nigeria. The F-statistic of the regression is equal to 193.730 and the associated F-statistical probability is equal to 0.00000, implies that government spending has statistically significant effect on human capital index in Nigeria. Based on the results, the study recommended among others that government of Nigeria needs to readdress resources to productive sectors that directly contribute to human capital, such as infrastructure education or healthcare and implement reforms to restructure government processes and reduce bureaucratic overhead.