Rural unemployment in Nigeria has gone up to 4.3% in the first part of 2024. It was 2.9% in the same period last year, showing an increase of 1.4%. The numbers have also gone up since the end of 2023.
This information is from a report by the Nigeria Labour Force Survey (NLFS), given by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The report shows that people living in rural areas are finding it harder to get jobs. More people are unemployed, fewer people are joining the workforce, and many are not getting enough work.
Less People Would Like To Work
The report points out big changes in Nigeria’s job market. People in rural areas are suffering the most. The number of people working in rural areas fell to 77.3%, down from 79.5% at the end of 2023.
It read: “The labour force participation rate among the working-age population declined to 77.3% in Q1 2024 from 79.5% in Q3 2023.”
In the first part of 2024, 82.5% of rural people worked, while only 74.0% of urban people worked. About 97.6% of rural people worked informal jobs, compared to 89.0% in cities. This shows a big difference between rural and city jobs.
The overall number of employed people has also dropped to 73.2% from 75.6% at the end of 2023. In rural areas, it fell slightly from 80.7% to 78.9% during the same period.
Rural People Work Mainly In Farming
More people are unemployed in rural areas, mainly due to problems in farming, which is the main job for rural people.
Despite these problems, 40.7% of rural people still work in farming. They play a big role in Nigeria’s informal economy.
More people are also giving up on looking for jobs. This number has risen to 5.0% in rural areas from 3.0% at the end of 2023. This shows that rural people are getting frustrated in finding jobs.
The report also shows that some people work less than 40 hours a week but are ready to work more. This was 11.8% in rural areas, down from 12.3% at the end of 2023.
Even though this drop might seem like things are getting better, many rural workers still don’t have enough work. Combining part-time work and unemployment, labour underutilization in rural areas is 15.6%.
Important Things To Know
The rise in unemployment is likely due to insecurity in rural areas. Insurgency, banditry, and local conflicts have forced many people to leave their homes and jobs.
Many rural areas, especially in northern Nigeria, are seeing a decline in economic activities as people are forced to leave their homes, limiting job opportunities.
Also, more frequent floods caused by climate change are hurting farming. This leads to lower productivity and fewer jobs in farming and fishing.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has asked Nigeria to include rural areas in its cash transfer program. This is to help with food insecurity and rising poverty.
It is important to extend the cash transfer program to make sure that the most vulnerable people in rural areas get the support they need.