Nigeria risks 30% jobless rate without 27 million formal jobs — NESG

Nigeria must create at least 27 million new formal jobs within the next five years or face a potential doubling of unemployment and underemployment to 30 per cent, the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) has warned.

In its Jobs and Productivity Report, released on Monday during the ongoing NES#31 in Abuja, the NESG outlined an urgent roadmap for employment creation and productivity growth, describing the next half-decade as critical for stabilising the country’s labour market and achieving inclusive economic growth.

“Jobs and productivity are central to Nigeria’s economic development,” the report stated. With the working-age population projected to reach 168 million by 2030, the country faces a defining challenge: to create 27 million new formal jobs or risk unemployment and underemployment rates doubling to 30 per cent,” the NESG report states.

The report emphasised that sustainable job creation must be anchored on economic transformation and productivity growth, calling for bold policy measures that stimulate enterprise, attract private investments, and address long-standing structural weaknesses.

It identified several key obstacles to employment expansion, including a shallow private sector base, skills mismatch, a weak education system, and jobless growth patterns that have limited the capacity of industries to absorb Nigeria’s growing youth population.

The NESG also highlighted regulatory bottlenecks and infrastructure deficits as major constraints to business competitiveness, urging the government to implement comprehensive reforms to unlock private sector-led growth.

According to the group, tackling the jobs challenge will require coordinated efforts across sectors, particularly in manufacturing, agriculture, digital technology, and services, to build a resilient economy capable of providing decent work for millions of Nigerians.

The NESG noted that Nigeria’s weak productive foundation, hampered by infrastructure deficits, inconsistent policies, and widespread informality, necessitates a focus on industrialisation and enterprise development, particularly for job-creating MSMEs.

It highlighted that transforming this landscape is crucial for economic advancement.

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