More skilled Nigerians engaging in unskilled labour -Report

A report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Wednesday, indicates that a growing number of skilled Nigerians unable to get employment in the formal sectors of the economy, are resorting to engaging in more informal, lower skilled activities to make ends meet.

The report said, “The declining availability of formal sector jobs relative to demand for them is resulting in unsuccessful job seekers establishing micro businesses and engaging in more informal, lower skilled and often lower paying economic activities to make ends meet.”

This area created 332,403 new jobs in the first quarter of 2015, compared to 227,072 new jobs in the fourth quarter of 2014.

This, the report noted, signified a 46.39 per cent increase between the two periods and represented 71 per cent of the total jobs created in the first quarter of this year, the largest share of total jobs in any quarter since the bureau started tracking jobs since 2012.

The report added, “This sharp increase in informal sector jobs is very much expected, given the numerous informal economic activities that come on during election periods.

This against a background alos contained in the report, that about 469,070 jobs were created in the first quarter (Q1) of the year in various sectors of the economy.

The 469,070 jobs created in the first quarter of the year were 99,485 jobs or 26.95 per cent higher than the 369,485 created in the fourth quarter of 2014.

The NBS, in the job creation report for the first quarter, stated that the informal sector created 130,941 or 27.92 per cent of the total jobs created.

It stated, “In the formal sector, which is predominantly ‘white collar job’, 130,941 new jobs were generated, representing 27.92 per cent of the total jobs generated in the first quarter of 2015. This is a decline of 5.13 per cent (7,085) when compared to the fourth quarter of 2014.

“However, this decline in the formal sector jobs often sought after by graduates created in Q1 2015 represents the third straight quarter of consistent reduction in formal sector jobs.

“On the other hand, there was also a 30.5 per cent (1,339 jobs) increase in the number of jobs created in the public sector of the economy, making it 5,726 new jobs generated in the public sector in the first quarter of 2015; the jobs generated in the public sector represents 1.2 per cent of the total jobs generated during the reference period.”

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