We Don’t Need No Education? Resource Curse on Human Capital in Kazakhstan

An abundance of natural resources does not always translate into economic growth. Rather, it can be detrimental to human capital, which is crucial for long-term economic development. Using panel data from 2000 to 2019 for 14 provinces (oblasts) and two major cities in Kazakhstan, this paper provides empirical evidence of a resource curse on human capital development. Regions that rely heavily on mineral resources spend very little on education. Mineral resource extraction, and oil and gas extraction in particular, is negatively associated with expenditure on education.