The report is the 2011 Performance Monitoring Report on Government’s Ministries, Departments and Agencies.A total of 51.18 million Nigerians were employed in the economy in 2011, while 16.07 were unemployed, the National Planning Commission said in a report in Abuja on Thursday.
The report stated that figures from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) clearly illustrated the deep challenges in Nigeria’s labour market.
“The NBS estimates that Nigeria’s population grew by 3.2 per cent in 2011 from 159.3 million people in 2010 to 164.4 million in 2011, reflecting rapid population growth.
“In 2011, Nigeria’s unemployment rose to 23.9 per cent compared with 21.1 per cent in 2010,” the report stated.
“Unemployment was higher in rural areas at 25.6 per cent than in urban areas, where it was 17 per cent on average,’’ the report added.
