Women and Employment in Nigeria: 2026 Data Guide to Participation, Jobs and Self-Employment
May 16, 2024 · Education, Human Resources, Youth Employment · 7 min read
Women are a major part of Nigeria’s labour force, but one headline employment rate does not describe women’s economic position. Participation, employment, unemployment, self-employment, informal work and job quality measure different things.
This 2026 update uses the National Bureau of Statistics Nigeria Labour Force Survey Q2 2024 for nationally surveyed labour-market conditions and the ILO-modelled estimates published through the World Bank Gender Data Portal for 2025 for an internationally comparable series. These sources use different methods and should not be treated as interchangeable.
At a glance: women in Nigeria’s labour market
| Indicator | Female figure | Comparison/context | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Labour-force participation | 79.1% | Male: 79.9% | NBS, Q2 2024 |
| Employment-to-population ratio | 75.0% | Male: 77.2% | NBS, Q2 2024 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.1% | Male: 3.4% | NBS, Q2 2024 |
| Self-employment share | 88.3% | Male: 82.2% | NBS, Q2 2024 |
| Female share of total labour force | 48.4% | ILO modelled estimate | 2025 |
| Female-to-male participation ratio | 95.7% | ILO modelled estimate | 2025 |
What Nigeria’s Q2 2024 labour-force survey says
The National Bureau of Statistics reported a national labour-force participation rate of 79.5% in Q2 2024. The rates were close by sex: 79.1% for females and 79.9% for males.
Source: National Bureau of Statistics, Nigeria Labour Force Survey Q2 2024
Participation means being either employed or unemployed and actively participating in the labour market under the survey framework. It is not the same as the share of women who are employed.
Employment-to-population ratio was lower for women than men
NBS reported that 75.0% of the female working-age population was employed in Q2 2024, compared with 77.2% of males. The national employment-to-population ratio was 76.1%.
This indicator is useful because it compares employment with the working-age population rather than only with people already in the labour force.
Source: NBS Labour Force Report Statistics Q2 2024
Female unemployment was higher in the NBS survey
The Q2 2024 NBS unemployment rate was 5.1% for females and 3.4% for males. The overall unemployment rate was 4.3%.
Under the current labour-force framework, unemployment refers to people without employment who are actively searching for work and available to work. It should not be interpreted as the percentage of the entire population without a job.
That distinction is important in Nigeria because a large share of work is self-employment or informal employment.
Self-employment dominates, especially among women
NBS reported that 85.6% of employed people were self-employed in Q2 2024. The share was 88.3% among females and 82.2% among males.
High self-employment does not automatically mean high entrepreneurial growth. Self-employment can range from productive businesses with employees and capital to low-income own-account work undertaken because formal wage jobs are limited.
For women-focused economic programmes, it is therefore more useful to ask what type of self-employment women are doing, how productive it is, whether businesses are formalised, and whether owners can access finance, markets, technology and skills.
Informal employment remains the dominant employment structure
NBS reported that 93.0% of employment was informal in Q2 2024, up slightly from 92.7% in Q1 2024.
Informality is important for analysing women’s economic opportunity because informal work is often associated with weaker access to social protection, formal contracts and employment benefits. However, informal employment is a statistical category, not a judgement about the value or legitimacy of the work people do.
Why the old 41% and 23 million entrepreneurship claims have been removed
Earlier versions of this article repeated widely circulated figures such as “41% of Nigerian micro-businesses are owned by women” and “23 million female entrepreneurs”. Those figures were typically passed through secondary articles without a clear, current statistical denominator or survey definition.
They are not being used in this update. A defensible entrepreneurship statistic needs a named survey, year, business population, ownership definition and sampling methodology.
Internationally comparable 2025 estimates tell a similar participation story, but use a different method
The World Bank Gender Data Portal publishes ILO-modelled labour-market estimates designed for international comparability. For Nigeria in 2025, it reports a female-to-male labour-force participation ratio of 95.7%, and women account for 48.4% of the total labour force.
Source: World Bank Gender Data Portal, ILO modelled female-to-male participation ratio
Source: World Bank Gender Data Portal, female share of total labour force
These are modelled estimates, not the same as the NBS quarterly household-survey estimates. Use one series consistently when analysing change over time.
Participation is not the same as job quality
Nigeria’s relatively small gender gap in labour-force participation can coexist with substantial differences in employment quality, earnings, occupation, business scale, unpaid care responsibilities and career progression.
For organisations designing programmes for women, a stronger measurement framework looks beyond whether women are “working”.
Useful dimensions include:
- wage employment versus self-employment;
- formal versus informal employment;
- hours worked and underemployment;
- earnings;
- occupation and sector;
- access to supervisory and leadership roles;
- business size and productivity;
- access to training, finance and technology;
- care responsibilities and time constraints.
Why women’s higher self-employment rate matters for programme design
If women are more concentrated in self-employment, a programme designed only around CV writing and formal recruitment will miss a large share of economic activity.
Depending on the target population, relevant support may include:
- business financial management;
- digital sales and marketing;
- procurement readiness;
- formalisation and record keeping;
- access to finance;
- customer acquisition;
- business networks;
- technology adoption;
- management capability.
Programme design should be based on the actual population rather than assuming all women need the same intervention.
Formal employment still matters
Wage and salaried employment can provide more predictable income, formal career structures and benefits in many contexts. But the NBS data show that employees are a minority of Nigeria’s employed population.
Workforce-development programmes should therefore distinguish at least three groups:
- women seeking entry into formal employment;
- women already employed and seeking progression;
- women in self-employment or enterprise who need productivity and growth support.
Unemployment should not be the only youth or women’s employment measure
Low measured unemployment can coexist with extensive informal work, low earnings or underemployment. NBS therefore reports several labour-underutilisation indicators in addition to unemployment.
For programme evaluation, consider:
- employment status;
- hours and underemployment;
- earnings where measurable;
- employment formality;
- job duration;
- skills use;
- career progression.
Use national statistics carefully when designing local programmes
Nigeria’s national averages can hide important differences by state, urban/rural location, education, disability, age and occupation.
The NBS Labour Force Survey includes breakdowns across several of these dimensions. A programme operating in Lagos, Kano or a rural community should not assume the national average describes its target group precisely.
What employers can measure internally
Employers do not need to wait for national data to understand their own workforce.
Where lawful and appropriate, track:
- female share of applicants and hires;
- representation by job level;
- promotion rates;
- access to high-value assignments;
- retention and voluntary turnover;
- training participation;
- pay and job-family differences;
- return after parental leave;
- representation in management and succession pipelines.
Internal data should be interpreted with sample-size and privacy safeguards.
What training providers should avoid
Women-focused training should not imply that women’s employment barriers are primarily a confidence problem. Skills can matter, but labour-market structure, care responsibilities, access to capital, job availability, employer practices and regulation can also shape outcomes.
Training is most useful when it is connected to a clearly diagnosed opportunity or capability gap.
How MATSH can use this evidence
For women-focused professional programmes in Nigeria, the strongest approach is to define the participant group first and then select the appropriate outcome.
Examples:
- formal-employment entrants: job-relevant skills, workplace communication, interview preparation and employer links;
- employed professionals: leadership, management, negotiation, digital capability and career progression;
- entrepreneurs: finance, business development, digital tools and market access.
Frequently asked questions
What was female labour-force participation in Nigeria?
NBS reported 79.1% for females in Q2 2024, compared with 79.9% for males. ILO-modelled 2025 estimates published by the World Bank form a separate internationally comparable series and should not be mixed directly with the quarterly NBS survey.
What was female unemployment in Nigeria?
NBS reported a 5.1% female unemployment rate in Q2 2024, compared with 3.4% for males and 4.3% nationally.
Are most employed Nigerian women self-employed?
In the NBS Q2 2024 survey, 88.3% of employed females were in self-employment, compared with 82.2% of employed males.
Does high labour-force participation mean women have equal economic opportunity?
No. Participation does not measure job quality, earnings, occupation, formalisation, leadership, business productivity or unpaid care. These need separate indicators.
Why does this article use both NBS and World Bank/ILO data?
NBS provides Nigeria’s national quarterly labour-force survey. The World Bank portal publishes ILO-modelled estimates designed for international comparison. Both are useful, but their methods differ, so the article labels them separately.
Related MATSH research
For wider regional context, see Women in Africa: 2026 Data on Work, Leadership, Skills and Economic Opportunity and Gender Equity in African Boardrooms.
Sources
- National Bureau of Statistics – Nigeria Labour Force Survey Q2 2024
- NBS – Nigeria Labour Force Report Statistics Q2 2024
- NBS Microdata Library – NLFS Q2 2024 documentation
- World Bank Gender Data Portal – female-to-male labour-force participation ratio
- World Bank Gender Data Portal – female share of total labour force
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