IMPORT COMPETITION AND LABOUR PRODUCTIVITY IN NIGERIA

Abstract

The paper examines the effects of import competition and other factors such as capital intensity, foreign direct investment (being a channel through which foreign technologies are transmitted into an economy) and access to electricity, on labour productivity in Nigeria using annual time series data spanning the period from 1991 to 2018. In doing this, the FMOLS estimator is employed for estimation of a long run cointegrating model. The study finds that import competition adversely affects labour productivity in the long run. It also finds that the effect of capital intensity on labour productivity is positive, but not statistically significant. Further evidence from the study are that foreign direct investment and access to electricity positively and significantly affect labour productivity in the country. The study recommends, as measures to increase labour productivity in the country, efforts by the government to improve access to electricity, enhance the attractiveness of various sectors of the economy to FDI, and boost domestic production capacity to increase volume and quality of output so as to enhance its competitiveness and reduce dependence on imports, especially of consumption goods.

Keywords

• Import Penetration
• Access to Electricity
• Foreign Direct Investment
• Capital intensity
• Labour productivity
• Nigeria