Unemployment Rate For Second Quarter Of 2020 Hits 27.1%

Data showing Nigeria's unemployment rate, after 18 months, has been released by the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics (NBS), stating that the country's unemployment rate has hit 27.1 percent in 2020's second quarter, up from the 23.1 percent recorded in 2018 third quarter.

The report titled, '‘Labor Force Statistics: Unemployment and Underemployment Report’ states that the rate of unemployment among young people between the ages of 15-34 years of age in the Q2 of 2020 was pegged at 34.9 percent, up from 29.7 percent.

The report read, “For the period under review, Q2 2020, the unemployment rate among young people (15-34 years) was 34.9 percent, up from 29.7 percent, while the rate of underemployment for the same age group rose to 28.2 percent from 25.7 percent in Q3 2018.

“These rates were the highest when compared to other age groupings.“The number of persons in the labour force (i.e. people within ages 15 -64, who are able and willing to work) was estimated to be 80,291,894. This was 11.3 percent less than the number of persons in Q3 2018.

READ ALSO: Lagos State To Start Charging Entertainers 5% Of Every Content

“Of this number, those within the age bracket of 25-34 were highest, with 23,328,460 or 29.1 percent of the labour force.

“Of this number, 35,585,274 were full-time employed (i.e. worked 40+ hours per week), while 22,942,003 were underemployed (i.e. working between 20-29 hours per week).

“For underemployment, the state which recorded the highest rate was Zamfara with 43.7 percent, while Anambra State recorded the lowest underemployment rate, with 17 percent in Q2 2020.

“A total number of 2,736,076 did not do any work in the last seven days preceding the survey due to the lockdown but had secure jobs to return to after the lockdown.”