Blogs
Nigeria is at a pivotal moment in its development journey. With a population exceeding 220 million people and more than half under the age of 25, the country holds immense potential to realise a powerful demographic dividend. Yet for many young Nigerians, this promise remains unfulfilled. High levels of unemployment and underemployment persist, and millions of young people continue to navigate a labour market that does not reflect their skills, aspirations, or lived realities.
Recent youth consultative meetings and national policy dialogues held in Lagos and Abuja under the Youth Futures Policy Research Project brought this challenge into sharp focus. Convened by the African Institute for Development Policy in collaboration with the CAP Youth Empowerment Institute and other partners, these engagements brought together young people, policymakers, researchers, civil society actors, and the private sector to reflect on one central question: how can Nigeria move beyond well-intentioned youth policies to deliver sustainable employment outcomes for young people?
Across the discussions, there was a shared recognition that Nigeria does not suffer from a lack of policy commitments or initiatives. Instead, the gap lies in weak implementation, fragmented programming, limited coordination, and the continued marginalisation of youth voices in decision-making spaces. Despite being the country’s largest demographic group, young people remain underrepresented in the processes that shape their economic futures.
Demographic pressure and structural constraints
Each year, an estimated 4.5 million young Nigerians enter the labour market, yet opportunities have not expanded at a comparable pace. Many young people encounter a persistent mismatch between education and labour market needs, limited access to finance, and weak linkages to emerging sectors. These challenges are particularly acute for young women, rural youth, and persons with disabilities, who face additional structural and social barriers that restrict access to opportunities and policy platforms.
Participants noted that while numerous youth-focused programmes exist at national and subnational levels, their impact has been constrained by poor coordination and inconsistent follow-through. Youth employment initiatives often operate in silos, with limited data sharing, monitoring, or alignment across institutions. As a result, many young people experience policy fatigue, where new programmes are announced but rarely translate into tangible improvements in livelihoods.
Moving beyond tokenism in youth participation
A central theme throughout the consultations was the need to move beyond symbolic youth engagement. Young people expressed frustration at being invited into policy spaces without their contributions influencing final decisions or implementation pathways. The Lagos dialogues sought to counter this by creating participatory spaces where youth perspectives, lived experiences, and futures-thinking exercises were treated as legitimate and necessary forms of evidence.
Through reflections on how work has evolved from manual systems to automation and digital platforms, participants examined the implications of rapid technological change for Nigeria’s labour market. Artificial intelligence, remote work, and the gig economy are already reshaping employment pathways. While these trends offer new opportunities for income generation, they also risk deepening inequality for young people without access to digital infrastructure or relevant skills.
Participants emphasised that preparing young Nigerians for the future of work requires more than narrow technical training. It demands investment in adaptability, creativity, continuous learning, and supportive ecosystems that enable young people to transition from skills acquisition into decent and sustainable employment.
Translating evidence into coordinated action
Another key insight from the dialogues was that Nigeria’s youth employment challenge is not primarily a policy deficit, but an implementation challenge. Fragmented institutional mandates, weak monitoring and evaluation systems, and limited alignment between education institutions and labour market demand continue to undermine impact. Without stronger coordination and accountability, even well-designed policies struggle to deliver meaningful outcomes.
The discussions also highlighted the potential of emerging sectors such as the digital economy, agribusiness, renewable energy, and the creative industries as pathways for inclusive growth. Young people are already innovating in these spaces, yet many remain constrained by limited access to finance, mentorship, and enabling policy environments. Participants called for stronger collaboration between government, the private sector, and development partners to build coherent pathways from education and training to decent work.
As the nature of work continues to evolve, the cost of excluding young people from shaping their future becomes increasingly high. The Lagos consultations reaffirmed that sustainable solutions are possible when youth voices are embedded across policy design, implementation, and evaluation processes. Grounding decisions in evidence, strengthening coordination, and institutionalising meaningful youth participation are essential steps toward unlocking Nigeria’s demographic potential.
Ultimately, the future of work in Nigeria will not be defined by policy frameworks alone, but by the extent to which young people are recognised as partners in development rather than passive recipients of decisions. Listening to, learning from, and acting on youth-driven evidence is not only inclusive practice; it is fundamental to building an employment ecosystem that is resilient, equitable, and fit for the future.