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Nigeria does not operate a single, unified labour market. Instead, the country functions as six distinct regional economies, each grappling with a unique crisis profile that defies a one-size-fits-all national solution.
Across 1,180 respondents surveyed in 21 cities, research carried out by SBM Intelligence revealed that 45.3 percent of households experienced a major economic shock in the past year—whether through job loss, business closure, or the complete inability to secure employment.
Driven by stagnant prospects, nearly four out of five respondents (79.1 percent) actively consider relocating for employment, uncovering a deep mismatch between the skills workers hold, the sectors they desire, and the realities of the local job market.
The primary barriers choking employment vary dramatically by zone. Nationally, low pay stands as the largest obstacle at 19.2 percent, followed by a lack of skills (17.5 percent), poor access to capital (16.4 percent), and an absolute shortage of available jobs (15.2 percent).
Infrastructure deficits (10.8 percent), insecurity (8.9 percent), regulatory corruption (6.4 percent), and nepotism (5.6 percent) further compound these headwinds. However, viewing these national averages masks severe regional disparities.
In the Southeast, low pay hits hardest, cited by 24.8 percent of respondents as their main obstacle. The region also records the highest household shock rate in the country at 66.5 percent.
Severe Economic Distress
Yet, despite severe economic distress, only 7.8 percent of respondents in the Southeast cite a skill deficit as their main issue, suggesting a well-educated workforce trapped in underpaying or nonexistent roles.
Conversely, the northern zones suffer primarily from structural skill deficits. In the Northwest, 26.8 percent of respondents identify a lack of skills as the binding constraint—the highest proportion nationwide.
In the Northeast, skills deficits lead at 22.9 percent, closely followed by low pay at 21.1 percent. While insecurity remains a real concern in the Northeast at 14.7 percent, the data show it functions as a secondary factor compared to foundational economic barriers.
In the South-South, an absence of available jobs leads the regional obstacles to 19.3 percent, alongside insecurity at 15.5 percent.
In the Southwest, the primary constraints centre on poor infrastructure (21 percent) and restricted access to capital (20 percent), rather than a total absence of jobs or skills.
National Narrative Fractures
When examining why young people cannot find or maintain employment, the national narrative fractures further.
Nationally, the primary drivers are a lack of vocational skills (23.3 percent), forced migration due to a lack of local opportunities (23 percent), and an unwillingness among youth to accept available low-paying or low-status jobs (21.9 percent). Discrimination accounts for 17.9 percent, followed by insecurity (8.4 percent) and family obligations (5 percent).
At the zonal level, youth barriers reveal stark generational challenges. In the North Central, an overwhelming 46.2 percent cite a lack of skills or training as the primary reason young people remain unemployed.
In the Northwest, 34.1 percent of respondents report that youth are unwilling to take the jobs that are currently available, indicating a growing expectation gap between available work and youth aspirations.
Discrimination emerges as a distinct issue in the South-South, where 33 percent of respondents mark it as the top reason youth are excluded from the local workforce.
Meanwhile, forced migration plagues the Southeast, Southwest, and Northwest, where 25.3 percent, 24.9 percent, and 20 percent of respondents, respectively, report that young people must leave their communities entirely to find viable work.
As young workers flee regional stagnation, the most mobile demographics remain those each region can least afford to lose: degree holders, job-seekers, and young adults.
Addressing this crisis requires policymakers to look beyond uniform national interventions and tailor economic, educational, and infrastructure solutions directly to the unique profile of each zone.
