WATCH THE VIDEO HERE The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has disclosed that 85.6% of Nigeria’s working-class population is self-employed, signifying the dominant role of self-employment in the nation’s labor market. This finding was highlighted in the NBS’ latest Q2 2024 Labor Force Survey, which further reveals shifts in employment patterns driven by economic and structural factors. In its breakdown, the report divides employment into two main categories: employees and self-employed individuals. Employees are those earning wages or salaries, including paid apprentices, while self-employed individuals, also referred to as own-account workers, operate businesses independently or with partners. The NBS report shows that informal employment continues to dominate Nigeria’s labor market, with 93% of total employment recorded in Q2 2024. Gender disparities are also evident, with women more likely to be employed informally compared to men. Rural areas show even higher informality rates, where 97.5% of workers are employed informally, compared to 90% in urban areas. This rural-urban divide emphasizes the role of agriculture and small-scale enterprises in driving rural employment, as well as the limited access to formal job opportunities in these regions.
NBS says 85.6% of working-class Nigerians are self-employed
