Nigeria’s unemployment rate fell to 4.3% in Q2 2024, signaling improvements in the labor market. This decrease from 5.3% in Q1 2024 reflects a steady recovery from the 5.0% rate in Q3 2023, according to the latest report from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The Labor Force Participation Rate rose to 79.5%, up from 77.3% in the previous quarter, indicating more people are engaging in the workforce. The Employment-to-Population Ratio also improved, climbing to 76.1% in Q2 2024 from 73.2% in Q1, showing that more working-age individuals are employed.
Self-employment continued to dominate, accounting for 85.6% of total employment, up from 84% in Q1. Informal employment slightly increased to 93.0%, reflecting the economy’s reliance on non-formal jobs.
Urban unemployment decreased to 5.2%, down from 6.0% in Q1, while rural unemployment was notably lower at 2.8%, compared to 4.3% in the previous quarter. This underscores the importance of agriculture and informal sectors in rural areas versus urban reliance on formal jobs.
Youth unemployment (ages 15–24) dropped significantly to 6.5%, down from 8.4% in Q1 2024. Gender disparities were evident, with female unemployment at 5.1% compared to 3.4% for males, highlighting the need for gender-inclusive policies to close this gap.
The report further explained, “The unemployment rate, defined as the share of the labor force that is unemployed but actively seeking work, stood at 4.3% in Q2 2024, a slight increase of 0.1 percentage point from the previous year. The male unemployment rate was 3.4%, and the female rate was 5.1%. Urban unemployment was 5.2%, while rural unemployment was 2.8%. Youth unemployment decreased to 6.5% from 8.4% in Q1 2024.”
Time-related underemployment, which measures workers seeking more hours, dropped to 9.2% in Q2 2024 from 10.6% in Q1. Labor underutilization also showed improvement, with LU2 (unemployment and time-related underemployment) falling to 13.0% from 15.3%. LU3 and LU4, which include potential labor force participation, also declined to 5.9% and 14.5%, respectively.
