7 Reasons to Invest in Nicaragua - #4 Human Capital
Jun 9th, 2010 by Kevin
One of Nicaragua’s greatest assets is its people. Nicaragua’s population is very young; in fact 80% of the total population (an estimated 5.7 million in 2009) is under the age of 39. The country’s labor force is made up of 2.3 million people, and it is known to be flexible and highly productive, with good working habits and the ability to learn quickly. Managua, the capital city of Nicaragua, has a total population of 1.3 million; of which over 27% range in age from 20 to 34 years.
Vast Labor Availability
With an estimated unemployment rate of 4.9% and an underemployment rate at over 33%, availability of workers is abundant. The country has a rich pool of available bilingual professionals trained abroad. Based on PRONicaragua´s research, an estimated 10% of the economically active population speaks English. There is also a broad base of workers for labor-intensive industries.
Quality Labor Pool
There is an ample pool of well-educated, computer-literate young individuals with university degrees in Nicaragua. They are eager to find jobs that provide them with the opportunity to compete worldwide. Because of its low attrition rates, a fast learning curve and low absenteeism, the Nicaraguan labor force is quickly becoming recognized as one of the most competitive and productive in the region.
Furthermore, the Economist Intelligence Unit’s Riskwire Report ranks Nicaragua as one of the two countries in the Central American region with the lowest labor market risk. The report measures various indicators, such as: union strength, labor disputes, wage restrictions and hiring and firing restrictions.
Education and Training
Education is the foundation of a country’s economic development. For this reason, the Government of Nicaragua has allocated a significant amount of its national budget to invest in primary, secondary and higher education. Education expenditures (including public Universities) amount to approximately 18% of the government’s total budget. Nicaragua’s overall literacy rate is at 78%. However, an 85% literacy rate is found in the 15 to 24 age bracket, while urban youth shows an even higher literacy rate at 92%.
Managua has been declared ―the first Central American capital free of illiteracy, as a result of a literacy campaign launched in 2005. The official certification from UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) to back up this achievement is already in process. These results are based on a survey undertaken in different districts of Managua by more than 2,000 college students.
University & Technical Education
The Nicaraguan education system includes quality technical training to meet the immediate and long-term needs of the labor force. The country offers:
- 48 universities with approximately 116,000 students enrolled
- 1 U.S. accredited English Language University 3 universities with bilingual programs;
- 5 Bilingual secondary schools
- Dozens of English Language Institutes
- 113 technological institutes servicing more than 20,000 students in the areas of:
- electronics
- computer systems and sciences
- agro forestry
INCAE, the prestigious Nicaraguan Harvard-affiliated regional business school ranked as number one in Latin America is located in Managua and offers a pool of individuals with world class managerial skills.
INATEC, the National Technological Institute, provides technical training that can be tailored to meet specific business needs.
English Skills
Nicaragua offers a large pool of well educated people who are proficient in English. In 2004, PRONicaragua launched the Nicasearch.com database to identify English-proficient individuals with good computer skills. The Nicasearch.com database includes over 4,000 bilingual professionals from the main cities in the country, and can be made available to qualified investors. Furthermore, in 2007 PRONicaragua organized a Job Fair attended by over 1000 people, of whom 51% passed a written English test and 43% passed both, written test and face-to-face interviews.
Other articles in this Series:
Reason #2 – Infrastructure Investment
Reason #3 – Investment Incentives
