Amina Mahmood Yakubu

This research aims to quantitatively examine earnings differentials between men and women in the
Nigerian labour market. This study also seeks to determine the effect of education on earnings in a
developing country context, Nigeria. The analysis is conducted at the micro-level using the most
recent data available for Nigeria – The Nigeria Living Standards Study (NLSS) 2018-19. The
relationship between education and earnings is examined in detail for the country and men and
women separately based on gender, religion, residential location, and zone. By employing Mincer’s
(1974) semi-logarithmic equation on a cross-sectional dataset, estimates of education returns are
derived, indicating the presence of inequality in the Nigerian labour market between men’s and
women’s rates of returns to education. Biases that arise due to sample selectivity, endogeneity of
schooling and measurement error are addressed. Firstly, the Heckman (1979) two-step procedure to
eliminate sample selection bias. Secondly, the Instrumental Variable two-stage least square
approach is used to correct for endogeneity and measurement error.