PurposeIn this research, we examine the role of financial development, FDI, democracy and political instability on economic growth in West Africa.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses the dynamic fixed effects technique on the secondary data obtained from 1996 to 2016.FindingsOur empirical findings suggest that even though no significant relationship is established in the short run, the long-run coefficient of FDI is found to be significant and positive; a 1% increase in FDI inflow into the West African sub-region results in a 0.26% increase in economic growth. The coefficient of democracy is significant neither in the short run nor in the long run, but political instability is found to significantly and negatively impact the growth of the countries. Finally, the estimate of financial development–growth nexus follows the supply-leading hypothesis.Research limitations/implicationsThis research affirms the proposition that FDI is a relevant means of technology and knowledge transfers, thus resulting in increasing returns to production as a result of productive spillovers, which drives the growth of the economy. Consequently, an efficient institution – where the rule of law, political stability and economic freedom are top priorities – is a key to accelerate the growth of the West African economy. Similarly, we confirm the validity of the supply-leading hypothesis in West Africa. As such, by deepening the financial system, the growth of the subregion is propelled because an efficient financial system is a basis for sustainable development.Practical implicationThe applicable policies are those that promote growth through FDI, financial development, democracy and political instability. The governments of West African countries are enjoined to promote policies that attract FDI into the subregion and promote financial sector credits so that economic performances may be enhanced. In addition, the governments of West African subregion should fully entrench democratic practices and enhance a stable and sustainable political environment. This will not only restore investor confidence but will also facilitate the inflow of FDI into the West African economy.Originality/valueOur study is the first to jointly examine these important growth determinants, especially in the context of West Africa. This becomes necessary in order to open the eyes of policy makers to the need for entrenched full democracy and to proffer sustainable cures to the frequent unrests in the subregion. The use of Pesaran (2007) technique of unit root is also a deviation from several existing studies. One advantage of this technique over others is that being a second-generation test, it tests variable unit root in the presence of cross-sectional dependence.

Research purpose: Eradicating poverty in the world requires some strategies, such as the poor having adequate access to productive assets and increasing their returns on assets, having adequate access to education and health facilities, increasing their access to job prospects, at the same time complementing these resources with other incomes. Hence, the goal of this study is to examine the link between human resources development and poverty in Nigeria, using annual secondary data from the Statistical Bulletin of the Central Bank of Nigeria from 1990 to 2020. Design/methodology/approach: The Auto-Regressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) Technique was explicitly employed to arrive at the statistical and logical conclusions in determining the impact of human resource development in the face of poverty. In addition, the bound testing approach was used to measure Nigeria’s long-run relationship between human resource development and poverty. Findings: The study revealed that human resource development has a statistically insignificant but non-decreasing impact/effect on poverty incidence in Nigeria, based on the short-run ARDL assessment. Furthermore, the bound testing approach also indicates that there is indeed a long-run relationship between human resource development and poverty incidence in Nigeria. The study, therefore, concludes that poverty is inescapable and, hence, creates underdevelopment. The study advises governments at all levels to develop and implement policies and programs aimed at improving or enhancing the welfare and well-being of the masses through job creation in order to close the income gap between the affluent and the deprived. Originality/value/practical implications: Fighting poverty in Nigeria has been one of the major priorities of most governments in Nigeria. These can be observed from the nationwide planning policies that have been focused on adequate provision of access to both human and natural resources. There has been an enormous call for the massive upgrading of the productive capacity of the people through investment in human resources. This paper is one of the several articles employed to evaluate the impact of human resource development on the incidence of poverty in Nigeria.