Nigeria’s unemployment rate declined to 4.3% in Q2 2024, marking a notable improvement in labor market conditions, according to a report released on Monday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). This represents a drop from 5.3% in Q1 2024 and 5.0% in Q3 2023, signaling a steady recovery.
Key highlights from the report include:
Labour Market Indicators
- Labour Force Participation Rate: Increased to 79.5% from 77.3% in the previous quarter, indicating higher workforce engagement.
- Employment-to-Population Ratio: Rose to 76.1% in Q2 2024, up from 73.2% in Q1 2024, showing a greater share of the working-age population gainfully employed.
Employment Distribution
- Self-Employment: Dominated the labor market, accounting for 85.6% of total employment, an increase from 84% in Q1 2024.
- Informal Employment: Remained prevalent at 93.0%, reflecting the economy’s reliance on informal jobs.
Urban and Rural Dynamics
- Urban Unemployment: Declined to 5.2%, down from 6.0% in Q1 2024.
- Rural Unemployment: Fell further to 2.8%, compared to 4.3% in the previous quarter, underscoring the continued role of agriculture and informal sectors in rural employment.
Youth Employment
- Youth unemployment (ages 15–24) dropped significantly to 6.5%, down from 8.4% in Q1 2024, reflecting improved opportunities for young Nigerians.
Gender Disparities
- Female Unemployment: Stood at 5.1%, compared to 3.4% for males, highlighting a persistent gender gap in employment opportunities. The report emphasizes the need for gender-inclusive policies to address this disparity.
The report read, “The unemployment rate is defined as the share of the labour force not employed but actively searching for and available for work.
“Unemployment is one of the components of labour underutilization. The unemployment rate for Q2 2024 was 4.3 percent, showing an increase of 0.1 percentage point compared to the same period last year.
“The unemployment rate among males was 3.4 percent and 5.1 percent among females.
“By place of residence, the unemployment rate was 5.2 per cent in urban areas and 2.8 per cent in rural areas. Youth unemployment rate was 6.5 per cent in Q2 2024, showing a decrease from 8.4 per cent in Q1 2024.”
Time-related underemployment, which measures workers seeking additional hours, dropped to 9.2 percent in Q2 2024 from 10.6 percent in Q1.
Labour underutilization metrics also improved, with LU2 (unemployment and time-related underemployment) decreasing to 13.0 percent from 15.3 percent in the previous quarter.
LU3 and LU4 metrics, which include potential labour force participation, also recorded declines to 5.9 percent and 14.5 percent, respectively.