Nigeria - Employment and Growth Study

Since 1999, Nigeria has made significant
progress in economic reform. Sound macroeconomic policies,
combined with structural reforms aimed at increasing the
supply responsiveness of the economy, ushered in sustained
high growth, driven by the non-oil economy. The goal of this
book is to shed light on the extent to which Nigeria's
much improved economic performance has impacted the labor
market, and to develop a growth strategy that could enhance
the employment intensity of growth. The report consists of
six chapters. Chapter one provides an overview of the
book's main findings, reviews Nigeria's growth
performance from 2001 to 2007, and addresses the question of
the sustainability of that growth performance. Chapter two
analyzes the evolution of the labor market since 1999. The
analysis focuses on the share of the formal and informal
sectors in employment; the development of incomes; and the
unemployment rate. Chapter three addresses the question of
what Nigeria could do to increase the availability of
quality jobs and reduce rising youth unemployment. Chapters
four discusses Nigeria's policy and investment
environment. Chapter five proposes strategies for skills
development; and Chapter six analyzes the effects of
restrictive trade policies.