Nigeria’s Q2 jobless rate stands at 4.2%, NBS data shows mixed trend

Nigeria’s unemployment rate stood at 4.2% in the April-June quarter, little changed from the previous quarter, showing a mixed trend of positive indicators and lingering challenges. Unemployment in the second quarter marginally rose from 4.1% in the first quarter, according to data published by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Thursday. It said “In Q2 2023, 77.1% of Nigeria’s working-age population was in employment. Disaggregating by sex, the employment-to-population ratio was 79.3% for men and 74.9% for women respectively. 

The employment-to-population ratio in urban areas  was 73.8% compared to 80.5% in rural areas. In Q2 2023, 88.0% of employed Nigerians were primarily self-employed with the remaining 12.0% being primarily engaged as employees. Disaggregation by sex, 85.2% of employed men were self-employed compared to 91.0% of employed women. Disaggregation by location, 80.5% of employed people in urban areas were self-employed compared with 95.3% of employed people in rural areas

The jobless rate among young people aged 15-24 years rose to 7.2% from 6.9%. The unemployment rate in urban areas also edged up to 5.9% from 5.4%. High unemployment has dogged Nigeria for decades as a rapid rise in population has outpaced economic growth amid poor infrastructure, holding back the distribution of wealth. But under a revised system that redefined employment as at least one hour of work in seven days, the jobless rate has crashed from the record 33.3% in the fourth quarter of 2020.

Still, underemployment remains a persistent issue. Most workers, around 88%, were self-employed during the period in question, with only 12% in wage employment.While the workforce participation rate remained high at 80.4%, the employment-to-population ratio was 77.1%, indicating a slight decline in the proportion of the working-age population engaged in productive activities during the second quarter. The jobless rate among people with post-secondary education remained stable at 8%, while the informal employment rate, which measures the proportion of workers in the grey economy, was little changed at 92.7%.