Nigeria places 3rd in global unemployment list with 18.8% after South Africa, Greece

Nigeria’s unemployment rate, which got worsened in the third quarter of 2017 at 18.8 percent, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), has been ranked third after South Africa and Greece in the global unemployment rate ranking.

According to the list released by Spectator Index on Twitter, Monday, South Africa, and Greece, occupy the first and second position in the global unemployment list with 27.7 percent and 20.9 percent respectively.

Brazil is rated 4th after Africa’s largest economy with 11.8 percent and Italy 5th with 10.8 percent.

In January this year, the International Labour Organisation reported in its “World Employment and Social Outlook: Trends 2018,” that the global unemployment rate is stabilizing after years in a slump due to a faltering economy, but unemployment, which stands at more than 192 million people globally, is expected to remain persistently high in many parts of the world.

Nigeria’s unemployment rate worsened from 16.2 percent in the second quarter of 2017 to 18.8 percent in the third quarter of the year.

According to the country’s statistics office, the number of people within the labour force who were unemployed increased from 13.6 million in the second quarter of the year to 15.9 million in the third quarter of the same year, with more than two million people unemployed within the period.

Similarly, the number of underemployed increased from 17.7 million in the second quarter to 18.0 million in Q3 2017. The rise in the rate was occasioned by the economic recession that saw the nation’s growth decelerate until September 2017, when Nigeria finally exited recession.

The report said economically active or working-age population (15 – 64 years of age) increased from 110.3 million in Q2 to 111.1 million in Q3 2017, while the labour force population increased from 83.9 million in the second quarter to 85.1 million in Q3 2017.

The total number of people in full-time employment in the country (at least 40 hours a week) declined from 52.7 million in Q2 2017 to 51.1 million in Q3 2017, according to the report, adding that total unemployment and underemployment combined increased from 37.2 percent in the previous quarter to 40.0 percent in Q3 2017.

The Spectator Index data show Japan at the bottom of the global unemployment list with 2.8 percent followed by Germany at 3.6 percent. The United Kingdom and the United States of America, respectively, occupied the 14th and 15th position with 4.3 percent and 4.1 percent on the global unemployment list.

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