Human Capital Accumulation in Emerging Asia, 1970-2030

This study finds that high educational attainment, especially at the secondary level, has significantly improved emerging Asia’s human capital accumulation in the past 40 years. Better parental education and income, lower income inequality, declining fertility, and higher public educational expenditures contributed to higher school enrollment. It argues that for sustained human development in the next 20 years, Asian economies must invest in raising enrollment rates at the secondary and tertiary levels and in improving educational quality.