Social Problem: Unemployment

 

     Unemployment.

Along with the problem, unemployment is also widespread in Nigeria. It is indeed, common to all the countries of the world whether they are industrially advanced or not. An international labour expert commented; (in September 1992) – “About 400million new workers are expected to enter the world’s labour force this decade and prospects of finding jobs for all of them are gloomy”. The Finnish directors of the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) employment departments, the problem of unemployment has remained intractible even in the developed economies of the world namely, U.S.A, France, Germany to mention but these few. Being employed makes one happy. Awake (1983) stated that meaningful employment could bring happiness, makes one wanted and needed. He further argued that people acquire certain skills so that they could be employed and be able to provide for their needs and that of the family, but unemployment seems to step in and dash this hope. Unemployment is one of the social problems in Nigeria which has assumed a greater dimension with the emergence of "black god" that is crude oil, as every young school leavers had to abandon the village in search of employment in the Urban centers. Government on her also forget Agricultural sector, which was the mainstay of the economy in the 1960s.

 

What is Unemployment?

Defines the unemployed as numbers of the economically active population who are without work but available for and seeking work, including people who have lost jobs and those who have voluntarily left work. Unemployment refers to a situation where people who are willing and capable of working are unable to find suitable paid employment.  Nigeria, which is the biggest Black Nation in the World, ought to have a very strong economy capable of employing almost all employable citizens. But unfortunately, the unemployment rates in Nigeria are alarming, and below are major of the causes of unemployment in the country.

Causes of Unemployment in Nigeria.

 

1.      Epileptic Electric Power Supply

Lack of regular electric power supply is the biggest cause of unemployment in Nigeria. Talking of how lack of electricity has caused unemployment in Nigeria, the matter is multi-facted. many foreign companies that would have come to invest in this country (considering the big marketing vista in Nigeria) and which would have provided many employment opportunities to Nigeria’s to reduced unemployment, have changed direction to other neighbouring countries with constant electricity supply in order to avoid operating at loss with 24-hours running of generators (which) is now becoming the tradition in Nigeria. 

The same problem has affected many local companies which could not cope with the high cost of running electric plants/generators all the time, and were thus forced to fold up and threw their employees into the labour market. What about self-employed Nigerians like welders and welding-related artisans who require high electric current which only public power or bigger generators can provide? Many of such ones have been thrown into unemployment as they could not afford bigger generators (in the absence of public power) for their work. Added to that is the large number of PHCN workers who were recently thrown into unemployment when the company was privatized to reduce expenses for the federal government as the company was not able to provide regular electric power to the public.

2.      Negligence Of Agriculture And Other Natural Resources.

Nigeria, as a country, is blessed with many un-utilized resources which are enough to gainfully engage every un-employed person. but the craze for quick 'oil money' has made both government and individuals to direct all attention to only the oil industry. those who are older would recall that the federal government and the regional governments of Nigeria managed the country with agricultural and other natural resources before the 'oil boom' (which has now become 'oil gloom'). In those days, cocoa production was the mainstay in western Nigeria (with the famous Cocoa House built from the proceeds); groundnut production was the mainstay in Northern Nigeria with the fame of the 'Groundnut Pyramids' back then; coal from Udi in Enugu, was the mainstay of Eastern Nigeria while rubber and palm oil were the mainstay of Midwestern Nigeria. it is hereby recommend that the various governments of Nigeria as well as rich individuals should establish mechanized farms in various parts of the country to absolve many job-seekers. in the same vein, the federal government could compel the various multi-national companies operating in Nigeria, to establish a farm as a way of boosting the economy and engaging more job-seeking Nigerians, to reduce unemployment in the country.

3.      Rural Urban Migration

Rural urban migration is usually explained in terms of push-pull factors. The push factor includes the pressure resulting from manland ratio in the rural areas and the existence of serious underemployment arising from the seasonal cycle of the lack of infrastructural facilities, which makes the rural life unattractive. Youths move to urban areas with the probability of securing lucrative employment in the industries. In addition to this, there is the concentration of social amenities in the urban centers. This meant that the rural areas are neglected in the allocation of social and economic opportunities.

4.      Corruption

Corruption, which has permeated the entire social structure of Nigeria, has robbed the country of developing a vibrant economic base. Funds meant for development projects have been misappropriated, diverted, or embezzled and stashed away in foreign banks, while some incompetent and corrupt bureaucrats and administrators in the public enterprise and parastala have liquidated these organizations. The point being made here is that the collaboration of the political elites, local and foreign contractors in the inflation of contract fees have robbed Nigeria of the chances of using more than $500 billion estimated revenue from the oil sale in the last 50 years to develop a vibrant economy that would have created jobs for the youths in various sectors of the economy. The ruling (political) class failed because they replaced the vision, policy and strategy, which should be the thrust of every leadership with transactions (contract award and other mundane money-related activities), as each successive government took turns to prey on the nation’s wealth, by using public power, resources, good will, utilities, instrument of abuse, and personal gains. Thus, crippling the economy and engendering and exacerbating unemployment which creates abject poverty, hunger and frustration.

Corruption can be defined as immoral action which could involve bribery, embezzlement or misappropriation of public funds for personal use. a corrupt government can be said to be a government which makes use of public funds for their (the government officials') personal and selfish use. Corruption is a cause of unemployment Nigeria because when those in government who are to use public money for building more industries are busy embezzling the funds for their selfish use, the result is massive increase in unemployment rate.  Without going too far, Nigeria is said to be most corrupt country in the world and so, has high unemployment rate. The corruption in Nigeria makes government to spend less on the welfare of the citizens of the country.

When corruption is taken as normal routine, functions which are to be performed by three or even four persons are taken up by only one person and that one person collects all the salaries meant for the three or four persons. in the same vein, we often hear of 'ghost workers' in some government establishments where names of imaginary workers are added to pay-rolls and some few corrupt bosses collect such salaries at the end of the month without any work done. the result of all these immoral acts is increased unemployment for the masses. Average Nigerian citizen lived under $2 Dollars per day which is equivalent to N710 Naira.

5.      Population Growth

Going by the 2006 census in Nigeria, the nation’s population was put at 140,431,790 and projections for the future indicate that the population could be over 180 million by the year 2020, given the annual growth rate of 3.2 percent (National Population commission and ICF Macro, 2009). With this population, Nigeria is the most populous nation in Africa. It is argued that the high population growth rate has resulted in the rapid growth of the labour force, which is far outstripping the supply of jobs. The accelerated growth of population on Nigeria’s unemployment problem is multifaceted. It affects the supply side through a high and rapid increase in the labour force relative to the absorptive capacity of the economy.

6.      Poor Quality Of Education

Every year, many graduates come out from the universities and colleges of education in Nigeria with little or nothing to contribute to the society. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, more than 200,000 alumnae graduate from Nigeria tertiary institutions yearly, but only very little number of them secure jobs after years of their graduation. The reason is because there are little facilities and ill-equipped lecturers/instructors who rendered poor services to the graduates when they were in their institutions. And so, the graduates come out of school half-baked, without practical background to make good impact to the society, neither are they able to defend the certificates which they are holding the result is that they add to the unemployment level of the country each year. Some scholars and commentators have argued that as far as the formal sector is concerned, the average Nigeria graduate is not employable and, therefore, does not possess the skills needed by the employers of labour for a formal employment. 

After all employers do not need people to pay or spend their money on but people that will help their organization grow and make more profit as the primary goal of every enterprise is to make profit. Often, this is attributed to the Nigeria’s education system, with its liberal bias. The course contents of most tertiary education in Nigeria lack entrepreneurial contents that would have enabled graduates to become job creators rather than job seekers. Access to entrepreneurial training such as tailoring, computer, incubation is been constraints by access to capital to establish their own after the training. Inadequate farming tools that could enhance mechanized agriculture. Low opportunities for young graduates create problem of violence due to lack of job and idleness, because without job they will not be able to play a useful role in the society.

Another problem is lack of skills that is closely related to that of poor quality education, as a cause of unemployment in Nigeria, is so lack of skills. For many years running, most Nigerian youths have disdained acquisition of skills, thinking that the time spent on such is wasted, and opting for so-called 'clean-shirt' and 'easy' ways of making money. With such mentality, these youths have grown into middle-age and even senior age without any skill to fall, thus becoming liabilities to themselves and others.

On the other hand, it is hard to see any person who is full of skills suffering from unemployment. A skillful person can adjust to many situations and environment and at least, feed himself and his household appropriately, it is therefore, recommended that graduates who studied various fields of engineering - mechanical, electrical/electronics, etc. should humble themselves to do practical training or apprenticeship in workshops of technicians for practical knowledge. In that way, such graduates will be fully equipped for employment (by employers or by themselves) and help reduce unemployment in the country.

SOLUTIONS TO UNEMPLOYMENT IN NIGERIA

First the Nigeria Government must play its constitutional role by creating enabling socioeconomic and political environment including the provision of infrastructure to make industrial climate investment friendly. This will encourage investors to invest and there by create jobs in order to absorb the unemployed youths.

These strategies will skyrocket good lives in the country and in return reduce unemployment. The solutions to reduce unemployment in Nigeria are:

Agricultural Mechanization and Enhancement: It is very important simply because, the reason why many citizens of Nigeria run away from agriculture as if Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) is after them is because agricultural practice is stressful to them. Agricultural practices in the country are mostly manual, that is by the use of manpower. Many who even wanted to go into the practice grow cold minds when they discover that without machines there will be low agricultural output. The use of hoes and other crude equipment that have the metallic parts made through sand casting, investment casting or forging processes wastes time but agricultural mechanization makes farming easy and less stressful.

With introduction of machines into agriculture, Nigerians will see agriculture as something interesting and start engaging in it. Advancing agriculture, like the new and improved system of farming and poultry will propel many to pick such as means of employment for them. When they make profit from the practice, they can enlarge and employ other persons to assist. Government should organize seminars where citizens will be taught on new improved system of making living from agriculture.

Support Small and Medium Enterprises: The establishments made by private individuals contribute so much to the growth of manufacturing companies in Nigeria. When the Government provide more funds to support these SMEs, more employment will be made and unemployment reduced to some extent. The Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) can empower the youths who work in those companies. There are many types of youth empowerment that can be offered to the youth workers as they work in the establishments. With the skills acquired, the workers can establish their own company and employ others also. It is not only the youths that are empowered in the companies but also the adult workers.

According to Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Small and Medium Enterprises manufacture more than 90 per cent of the products used in Nigeria. This shows that they play important role in the country. The Government should reduce the huge amount of charge on SMEs so that they can enlarge their coast. Those who are doing well in Small and Medium Enterprises should mentor others as mentoring is important.

Family Planning: In China for instance, due to high increase in their population, a Law was passed on the number of children each parent is to have. When family planning is introduced and passed as a Law with implementation in Nigeria, parents will not “release” babies again as if they are urinating. Because of the plan, the created job opportunities will go to some extent and results to reduction in high unemployment rate in the country.

Computer Skill Acquisition: We are in the age where computer play important roles. The truth is that the importance of computer cannot be overemphasized. Its usefulness is found in many departments of any establishment in the world of today. In production companies, banking sector, education, and even in agriculture, computer has many roles to play.

Unemployment among Nigerian graduates would have been reduced by equipping them on computer skills when they were still undergraduates. I believe in using what you have to get what you want in the positive sense of it because many undergraduates have computers. Many students in institution of higher learning in Nigeria can be taught on how to make money by the use of their computers. This can come in form of seminars sponsored by either the government of the country or the campuses. When the students learn good skills acquisition on computer, they can develop it to be source of their income even in their institutions and after their graduation.

 For your Full Project, you can contact us.