Employment by status in Nigeria
Nigeria: Employment by status was 13.6% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Employment by status in Nigeria, 1991–2024
Source: International Labour Organization (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for employment by status in Nigeria is 13.6%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 34 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.9% on the previous year and up 11.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment by status in Nigeria peaked at 13.6% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 4.4%, in 1991.
Nigeria ranks 182nd of 186 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 5.2% | 4.4% | 5.8% | 9 |
| 2000s | 8.1% | 6.1% | 10.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 12.2% | 10.7% | 13.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 13.0% | 12.4% | 13.6% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Nigeria
- 179 Mozambique 14.5% compare
- 180 Central African Republic 14.5% compare
- 181 Tanzania 14.5% compare
- 183 Madagascar 11.5% compare
- 184 Sierra Leone 11.0% compare
- 185 Niger 10.3% compare
More work & labour data for Nigeria
- Legislation on sexual harassment in employment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Criminal sanctions or compensation for workplace sexual harassment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Women can take the same jobs as men 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) 82.5% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15+) 84.3% (2025)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) 95.7% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15 80.7% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15-6 83.3% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) 84.7% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15 81.9% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment by status in Nigeria?
- Employment by status in Nigeria was 13.6% in 2024, according to International Labour Organization (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest employment by status recorded in Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was 13.6% in 2024.
- What is the lowest employment by status recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.4% in 1991.
- How does Nigeria rank for employment by status?
- Nigeria ranks 182nd out of 186 countries with data for 2024.
- Is employment by status rising or falling in Nigeria?
- Over the last ten years it is up 11.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Nigeria data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Employment by status. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 34 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of people in employment working as employees, as a percentage of total employment.