REGIONAL HUMAN CAPITAL DISTRIBUTION AND DISPARITIES IN TURKEY

Abstract

Human capital is a major driver of regional growth and provides insight into degrees of regional disparity (Barro & Lee 1993). Addressing these disparities is crucial to economic stability and cohesion in Turkey; therefore, we investigated the regional distribution of human capital and its evolution between 2008 and 2012. We used district level address-based population registration system data from 957 districts to analyze regional human capital disparities and report significant results. Specifically, regional disparities in human capital are decreasing in Turkey, but enormous regional district level disparities persist. A disparity exists between the western and eastern regions in human capital at both primary and secondary educational levels. However, this east–west dualism almost disappears with regard to human capital at the tertiary educational level, which is heavily concentrated in Turkey's major cities (Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Kocaeli, and Bursa).