Breaking: Nigeria’s Unemployment Rate Drops From 33.1% To 4.1% –NBS

For the first time in over 24 months, the National Bureau of Statistics on Thursday released the unemployment figures for Nigeria with the country recording a decline in unemployment rate from 33.1 per cent reported in March 2021 to 4.1 per cent for the first quarter of 2023.

The NBS disclosed this in its report titled Nigeria’s Labour Force Survey (NLFS).

However, the statistics bureau noted that the drop is not a result of creation of more jobs but a redefinition of the term unemployment in line with the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) guideline.

In the report, the NBS defined employment as any labour for profit done for even an hour in seven days.

The report stated that about three-quarters of working-age Nigerians were employed – 73.6 per cent in Q4 2022 and 76.7 per cent in Q1 2023.

This, it noted, showed that most people were engaged in some type of jobs for at least one hour in a week, for pay or profit.

It added that about one-third (36.4 per cent in Q4 2022 and 33.2 per cent in Q1 2023) of employed persons worked less than 40 hours per week in both quarters.

This, according to the NBS report, was most common among women, individuals with lower levels of education, young people, and those living in rural areas.

Underemployment rate which is a share of employed people working less than 40 hours per week and declaring themselves willing and available to work more was 13.7 per cent in Q4 2022 and 12.2 per cent in Q1 2023.

The NBS added that the share of wage employment was 13.4 per cent in Q4 2022 and 11.8 per cent in Q1 2023.

It said, “Most Nigerians operate their own businesses or engaged in farming activities. The shares are 73.1 per cent and 75.4 per cent in Q4 2022 and Q1 2023 respectively.

“A further 10.7 per cent in Q4 2022 and 10.6 per cent in Q1 2023 were engaged helping (without pay or profit) in a household business.

“In Q4 2022, 2.6 per cent were engaged as Apprentices/Interns and 2.2 per cent in Q1, 2023.”