Employment Intensity of Output Growth in Kenya
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Date
2019-06-21
Authors
Thuku, Gideon Kiguru
Omolo, Jacob
Muniu, Joseph
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
IOSR Journal of Economics and Finance (IOSR-JEF)
Abstract
Creation of productive and sustainable employment opportunities remains a key policy priority of
most countries including Kenya. Employment creation in Kenya has been based on the premise that high
economic growth should translate to more employment opportunities. Kenya has experienced varying rates of
economic growth.In spite of the increase in growth rates, Kenya’s employment elasticity declined from 1.28 in
1992-1996 to 0.5 and 0.38 in 2004-2008 and 2009-2016 respectively. Since political independence in 1963, the
Kenyan government has implemented various fiscal policies that focus on employment creation. Despite all
these interventions, creation of adequate, productive and sustainable employment opportunities continues to be
one of the greatest economic challenges in the country. The purpose of the study was therefore to determine
employment elasticities in priority sectors in Kenya. The study found that employment elasticities within priority
sectors ranged from 0.115 to 0.412. The study concluded that the employment elasticity’s response to fiscal
policies varied among the priority sectors. The study recommends that government should give more attention
to service sectors as a means of enhancing employment creation. The study further recommends that policies
pursued by the government to boost employment should be sector specific.
Description
A Research Article in the IOSR Journal of Economics and Finance (IOSR-JEF)
Keywords
Employment Elasticity, Output Growth
Citation
Thuku, G. K., Omolo, J., & Muniu, J. (2019). Employment Intensity of Output Growth in Kenya. Journal of Economics and Finance, 10, 9-21.