A publication of the Center for Fiscal Transparency and Public Integrity

Search
The Public Interest A forum for rigorous analysis, practical solutions, and evidence in service of the public interest

Data  · Economy

One in eight young Nigerians was not in employment, education or training in the second quarter of 2024

Youth unemployment and the share of young people not in employment, education or training, by quarter, from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) Nigeria Labour Force Survey, 2022 to 2024.

The Public Interest ·

In the second quarter of 2024, 12.5 percent of Nigerians aged 15 to 24 were not in employment, education or training (NEET), according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The share was 14.3 percent for young women and 10.9 percent for young men. It was 10.0 percent in the first quarter of 2023 and 14.4 percent in the first quarter of 2024, the highest in the series.

Young people not in employment, education or training (NEET), by quarterShare of all Nigerians aged 15 to 24, percent
0%5%10%15%Q4 2022, NEET share: 12.1%12.1%Q4 2022Q1 2023, NEET share: 10.0%10.0%Q1 2023Q2 2023, NEET share: 13.8%13.8%Q2 2023Q3 2023, NEET share: 13.7%13.7%Q3 2023Q1 2024, NEET share: 14.4%14.4%Q1 2024Q2 2024, NEET share: 12.5%12.5%Q2 2024 0%5%10%15%Q4 2022, NEET share: 12.1%12%Q4 2022Q1 2023, NEET share: 10.0%10%Q1 2023Q2 2023, NEET share: 13.8%14%Q2 2023Q3 2023, NEET share: 13.7%14%Q3 2023Q1 2024, NEET share: 14.4%14%Q1 2024Q2 2024, NEET share: 12.5%13%Q2 2024

Source: National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria Labour Force Survey quarterly reports, Q2 2023 to Q2 2024. NEET is the share of all young people aged 15 to 24 who are not employed and not in education or training. The figures for Q4 2022 and Q1 2023 were first published in the Q2 2023 report. NBS has published no figures for Q4 2023, and none for any quarter after Q2 2024 as of 2 November 2026. The series began with the revised survey in Q4 2022 and is not comparable with earlier NBS labor statistics.

Source documents: NBS, Nigeria Labour Force Survey Q2 2023; NBS, Nigeria Labour Force Survey Q3 2023; NBS, Nigeria Labour Force Survey Q1 2024; NBS, Nigeria Labour Force Survey Q2 2024.

Show the figures
QuarterNEET share
Q4 202212.1%
Q1 202310.0%
Q2 202313.8%
Q3 202313.7%
Q1 202414.4%
Q2 202412.5%
Download as CSV

The NEET share is measured against all young people and includes those who are not looking for work. The youth unemployment rate is measured against young people in the labor force and counts only those without work who are available for and seeking it. It was 6.5 percent in the second quarter of 2024, against a national rate of 4.3 percent, and it was above the national rate in each of the six published quarters.

Youth and national unemployment rate, by quarterUnemployed as a share of the labor force, percent
Ages 15 to 24National0%3%5%8%10%Q4 2022, Ages 15 to 24: 8.3%Q1 2023, Ages 15 to 24: 6.9%Q2 2023, Ages 15 to 24: 7.2%Q3 2023, Ages 15 to 24: 8.6%Q1 2024, Ages 15 to 24: 8.4%Q2 2024, Ages 15 to 24: 6.5%Q4 2022, National: 5.3%Q1 2023, National: 4.1%Q2 2023, National: 4.2%Q3 2023, National: 5.0%Q1 2024, National: 5.3%Q2 2024, National: 4.3%6.5%4.3%Q4 2022Q1 2023Q2 2023Q3 2023Q4 2023Q1 2024Q2 2024 Ages 15 to 24National0%3%5%8%10%Q4 2022, Ages 15 to 24: 8.3%Q1 2023, Ages 15 to 24: 6.9%Q2 2023, Ages 15 to 24: 7.2%Q3 2023, Ages 15 to 24: 8.6%Q1 2024, Ages 15 to 24: 8.4%Q2 2024, Ages 15 to 24: 6.5%Q4 2022, National: 5.3%Q1 2023, National: 4.1%Q2 2023, National: 4.2%Q3 2023, National: 5.0%Q1 2024, National: 5.3%Q2 2024, National: 4.3%6.5%4.3%Q4 2022Q2 2023Q4 2023Q2 2024

Source: National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria Labour Force Survey quarterly reports, Q4 2022 to Q2 2024. NBS has published no figures for Q4 2023, shown as a break in the lines. The revised survey counts as employed anyone who worked at least one hour for pay or profit in the previous seven days. The figures are not comparable with the old series, which put national unemployment at 33.3 percent in Q4 2020 and defined youth as ages 15 to 34.

Source documents: NBS, Nigeria Labour Force Survey Q4 2022 and Q1 2023; NBS, Nigeria Labour Force Survey Q2 2023; NBS, Nigeria Labour Force Survey Q3 2023; NBS, Nigeria Labour Force Survey Q1 2024; NBS, Nigeria Labour Force Survey Q2 2024; NBS, Labor Force Statistics: Unemployment and Underemployment Report (Q4 2020), copy held by Africa Check.

Show the figures
QuarterAges 15 to 24National
Q4 20228.3%5.3%
Q1 20236.9%4.1%
Q2 20237.2%4.2%
Q3 20238.6%5.0%
Q4 2023
Q1 20248.4%5.3%
Q2 20246.5%4.3%
Download as CSV

The figures come from the revised Nigeria Labour Force Survey (NLFS), introduced in 2023 with data collected from the fourth quarter of 2022; the first results were released on 24 August 2023. The revised survey defines the working-age population as everyone aged 15 and over, where the old survey stopped at 64, and counts as employed anyone who worked at least one hour for pay or profit in the previous seven days, where the old survey required at least 20 hours. NBS states that these changes make a direct comparison with the old series impossible. The last figure in the old series put national unemployment at 33.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2020.

NBS did not publish figures for the fourth quarter of 2023. The NLFS report for the second quarter of 2024, released in November 2024, is the latest; no later quarter had been published as of 2 November 2026.

More data

All data