Economic growth in Africa: Does gender education still matter?

This study examines the relevance of gender education to economic growth in Africa. This is investigated across different levels of education attainments and human capital stocks for females and males. Using the datasets of Barro and Lee (2013) and Lee and Lee (2016) which cover the period from 1960 to 2010 and static panel estimation methods (pooled, fixed effects and random effects) as well as dynamic GMM methods (one step and two step difference and system GMM) for analysis, it is found that education attainments and human capital stocks (for females and males) are indispensable to economic growth in Africa. Specifically, we find that male education attainment and human capital stock contribute more to economic growth than female education attainment and human capital stock. Based on these findings, it is imperative for governments in Africa to provide a quality education for both genders which would be based not only on theoretical learning but also on practical learning and skill development that would increase the stocks of human capital embodied in both genders. This would enable them to contribute more to economic growth of the continent