Main Messages

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Nonrenewable Natural Capital and Human Capital Distortions: Impact on Accumulation, Gender, and the Public Sector

James Cust and Pierre Mandon

Main Messages

• The average level of human capital per capita is lower in countries rich in nonrenewable natural resources—such as oil, gas and minerals—compared to those that are not. • Evidence suggests that an abundance of these types of resources can reduce the accumulation of human capital compared to peer countries. • The chapter identifies three ways human capital differs between these groups of countries: (1) the resource sector reallocates human capital away from some highproductivity sectors due to Dutch disease, (2) the distribution of human capital between men and women is more unequal in these (nonrenewable) resource-rich countries compared with other countries, and (3) human capital is skewed toward the public sector more in resource-rich countries. • These characteristics may contribute to, and be associated with, lower overall worker productivity arising from resource dependence.