Estimating the returns to human capital in the cities of developing countries
The purpose of this project is to examine the relationship between returns to human capital, urbanisation, and growth, using a household survey and population census microdata to estimate the wage profiles for:
(i) The urban areas of various groups of countries.
(ii) The rural areas of the same countries.
(iii) The largest city and the secondary cities of the same countries.
Comparing the wage profiles of urban and rural areas, as well as between major cities and secondary cities, will allow us to determine whether reallocating people across locations could increase income. We will then use simple development account methods to discuss the contribution of urban-specific human capital to the variation in cross-country income differences.
