World apex financial institution, the World Bank, in its latest report has dropped a bombshell, predicting that no fewer than 80million working-age Nigerians may be jobless by the year 2030.
The World Bank also predicted in a report titled: “Nigeria Development Update (December 2022): Nigeria’s Choice Report,” that about 23million more Nigerians will drop below the poverty line.
In the report, the World Bank said the limited job creation in the country is among the factors responsible for this worrying indications.
According to the report, an estimated 3.5 million Nigerians would enter the labor market every year, a number, that cannot be absorbed by a public sector-led economy of the country.
The report also highlighted that most poverty in Nigeria is in-work poverty, and having any job does not guarantee a way out of poverty. It stated that employment in agriculture is far more prevalent among those that are poor.
The World Bank however proffered the creation of better jobs in other to reduce poverty and increase economic transformation.
The global bank stated that while Nigeria was one of the best growth performers globally in the 2000s, it failed to build institutions that could foster structural transformation and job creation, adding that this explains why nation is currently is struggling to keep pace with growth rates, and transformation of its peers since the early 2010s with GDP per capita dropping from US$2,280 in 2010 to US$2,097 in 2020, and the number of Nigerians living below the poverty line rising from 68 million to about 80 million.
Also, Nigeria is one of the least developed countries in the world, with a ranking of 160 out of 188 on the 2021 Human Development Index.
“Creating better jobs is a necessary condition for accelerating poverty reduction and economic transformation.
“It is estimated that 3.5 million Nigerians enter the labor market every year, a number that cannot be absorbed by a public sector-led economy. This large number represents 41 per cent of the total new entrants in the labor market in West Africa.
“However, even if job creation were to catch up with the expansion of the labor force, Nigerian workers would not fully benefit if other socio-economic conditions remain unchanged. A child born in Nigeria today will be 36 per cent as productive in adulthood as she could be if she enjoyed more and better-quality education and full health (the sixth-lowest percentage globally).
“A combination of limited job creation, booming demographics, and unfulfilled aspirations is pushing young Nigerians to emigrate abroad in search of gainful employment.”
According to the World Bank, unlocking private investment will create more and better-quality jobs in a sustainable manner in the nation since the private sector is at the heart of the development process and has been a critical component in every sustained growth success story around the world.
It said, “In Nigeria, the private sector is responsible for an estimated 90 per cent of GDP and 94 per cent of jobs, and thus is the only option for creating job-enhancing growth.
“Hence, despite the current challenges, Nigeria can still chart a sustainable and inclusive growth path based on solid economic institutions with a sound macroeconomic environment that reduces regional disparities, strong human capital that will help children reach their full potential and acquire the skills needed for a modern economy, and productive firms that create more and better jobs.”
