Uma caracterização do capital humano em Governador Valadares no período de 2006 a 2020

Abstract

According to Mankiw, Romer and Weil (1992), a country's production comes from a combination of physical capital, human capital and labor, with human capital playing a major role in explaining income disparities between different regions. This paper focuses on human capital, especially in Governador Valadares, Minas Gerais, highlighting in the literature the importance of building up this capital in order to increase the productivity of the workforce, boost innovation and, consequently, promote economic growth. The research addresses the importance of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in transmitting knowledge to the Brazilian population, whether by public or private entities, maintained at federal, state or municipal level, as highlighted by Pinto et al. (2021). These institutions, which include Colleges, University Centers, Universities and Federal Institutes of Education, play crucial roles in fostering regional development, promoting the transmission of human capital and stimulating innovation and technology. The city of Governador Valadares has benefited from national educational expansion, notably through the REUNI program, culminating in a significant increase in the number of courses offered by local HEIs. In this way, the research seeks to understand the impacts of the opening of HEIs in the locality, exploring the democratization of access to education, the increase in human capital in the city and the possible correlation of these aspects with the increase in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita. The study also reveals that the opening of HEIs has had a positive impact on the evolution of schooling, but the disparity between entrants and graduates points to challenges in retaining students in higher education. The correlation between GDP per capita and the increase in the number of people with completed higher education underlines the interdependence between economic development and education.