O capital humano nas dimensões saúde e educação explica os diferenciais de renda per capita das áreas rurais no Brasil?

Abstract

This dissertation analyzes the determinants of rural per capita income differentials across Brazilian states, with particular emphasis on the role of health human capital in comparison to education human capital. The study uses microdata from the Household Budget Surveys (Pesquisa de Orçamentos Familiares – POF) for the years 2003, 2009, and 2018, from which a Rural Malnutrition Index is constructed based on household-level intake of essential micronutrients, serving as a proxy for health human capital. The empirical strategy relies on state-level panel data econometric models, estimated using fixed-effects and random-effects approaches, with model selection based on the Hausman and Breusch–Pagan tests. In estimating the econometric relationships between per capita income and different forms of human capital, relevant socioeconomic variables are included as controls, such as average years of schooling, income inequality, poverty indices, as well as regional effects. The results indicate that health human capital, captured by the malnutrition index, exerts a negative and statistically significant effect on rural per capita income, displaying greater explanatory power than average schooling within the analyzed context. The analysis also reveals substantial regional heterogeneity, with higher malnutrition intensity in the North and Northeast regions. Overall, the findings suggest that nutritional constraints constitute a relevant structural factor affecting per capita income levels in rural Brazil, indicating that policies aimed at food and nutritional security may play a central role in reducing regional income disparities.