Unemployment rate down to 4.1% in Q1
By Patience Ikpeme
The rate of unemployed Nigerians has dropped to 4.1 percent in first quarter of 2023, against 5.3 percent in Q4 2022, National Bureau of Statistics’ (NBS) latest Nigeria Labour Force Survey (NLFS) for Q4 2022 and Q1 2023 revealed.
According to NBS during the period reference, unemployment was higher among women than among men. Similarly, it said that unemployment was also higher among those with higher educational attainment, being highest for those with post-secondary education.
“This is a common trend observed in other countries. Those with higher levels of education are more likely to seek formal, wage-employment jobs, which could require longer periods of search.
They are also likely to be from higher-income households, which can support them while they conduct search activities. Unemployment was highest for young Nigerians compared to other age groups and higher in urban compared to rural areas”.
The report disclosed that some Nigerians were outside labour force but were in the potential labour force. The report explained that labour force covers those who are either employed or unemployed.
“Some people are not employed but they are either searching for paid work but not available to work or they are available to work but they are not searching; this is the potential labour force population. The share of working-age Nigerians who were out of labour force but in the potential labour force was 3.7% in Q4 2022 and 2.3% in Q1 2023”
It said that about three-quarters of working-age Nigerians were employed– 73.6% in Q4 2022 and 76.7% in Q1 2023.
This, it explains showed that most people were engaged in some type of jobs for at least one hour in a week, for pay or profit.
About one-third (36.4% in Q4 2022 and 33.2% in Q1 2023) of employed persons worked less than 40 hours per week in both quarters. This was most common among women, individuals with lower levels of education, young people, and those living in rural areas.
On under employment rate category, which it explained as a share of employed people working less than 40 hours per week and declaring themselves willing and available to work more, was 13.7% in Q4 2022 and 12.2% in Q1 2023.
The share of wage employment was 13.4% in Q4 2022 and 11.8% in Q1 2023.
According to NBS, most Nigerians operate their own businesses or engaged in farming activities. The shares of this category are, 73.1% and 75.4% in Q4 2022 and Q1 2023 respectively.
A further 10.7% in Q4 2022 and 10.6% in Q1 2023 were engaged helping (without pay or profit) in a household business.
In Q4 2022, 2.6% Nigerians engaged as apprentices/interns and 2.2% in Q1, 2023.
Explaining modalities for data collection for the revised NLFS, NBS noted it was based on a sample of 35,520 households nationwide. The bureau explained the excercise was conducted continuously throughout the year, with national-level results produced quarterly and state-level results at the end of a full year.
