Nigeria

More than 100 million youths in Nigeria unemployed - FG discloses

Tuesday, December 17, 2019 at 11:43 PM by Khadijah Thabit

- The federal government says it is worried about the rising level of unemployment in Nigeria

- The government notes that 60% of the population figure of the country at 200 million do not have decent jobs

- Chris Ngige, minister of labour and employment, laments that Nigerians are travelling through illegal routes

Nigeria is grappling with a high level of unemployment as the federal government said, on Tuesday, December 17, that over 100 million of its teeming youths are without decent jobs.

The government, which described the country as peopled by 200 citizens, said 60% of the population is made of youths and out of this figure, only 10% are employed.

Daily Trust reports that Chris Ngige, minister of labour and employment, who said this during the 2019 national migration dialogue in Abuja, said the government was disturbed that Nigerians are leaving the country through irregular routes.

“Nigeria is over 200 million and about 60% are youths who need employment. Unfortunately, only 10% have decent jobs.

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“Many are unemployable while others are not employed. We are working that they get job so that they can have a roof over their head, feed and enjoy life," Ngige said.

Legit.ng earlier reported that the World Bank recently said that a total of five million Nigerians have joined the labour force in 2018.

The World Bank has said that only 450,000 of the total number of recent Nigerians who joined the labour force are currently employed.

A report released by the banks Nigeria Economic Update (NEU) in Abuja on Monday, December 2, showed that the bank with population growth (estimated at 2.6 per cent) outpacing economic growth, per capita incomes are falling.

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Ngige also recently condemned the industrial action embarked upon by electricity workers.

According to him, the strike was as a result of a power struggle between the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) and the Senior Staff Association of Electricity and Allied Companies (SSAEAC).