45.3% of Nigerian Households Face Job Loss, Business Closures – SBM

A new report by SBM intelligence has found that nearly half of Nigerian households experienced a job loss, business closure or inability to find work within the past year, highlighting the depth of labour market pressure across the country.

The report, titled “Six Zones, One Crisis: What Nigerians say about jobs, skills and the risk of leaving”, said 45.3 percent of surveyed households experienced at least one of the economic shocks.

Based on an in-person survey of 1,180 respondents across 21 cities and the six geopolitical zones between July 7 and 18, 2026, the report also found that 79.1 percent of respondents would consider relocating from their current zone for a good job.

The Southeast recorded the highest incidence of household economic shocks at 66.5 per cent, followed by the Northcentral at 61.3 per cent and South-South at 50.3 per cent.

The Northeast recorded 40.4 percent, while the Southwest had 32.7 percent. The Northwest recorded the lowest rate at 21.5 percent.

SBM Intelligence linked the Southeast figure to infrastructure, capital and security pressures, including disruptions caused by sit-at-home orders. It cautioned that the lower rate in the Northwest should not necessarily be seen as evidence of a healthier formal labour market, noting that subsistence agriculture may have cushioned some households.

The report also showed that the main barriers to employment differed across regions. Low pay was the leading constraint in the Southeast and South-South, while skills shortages were more prominent in the Northwest and Northeast.

Poor infrastructure was the biggest obstacle in the Southwest, while access to capital was also a major concern. Credit access featured prominently in the Northcentral.

Mobility has also become a major response to weak labour markets. The report found that 21.2 percent of respondents would definitely relocate for a good job, while 57.9 percent could do so depending on the conditions. Only 20.9 percent preferred to remain where they were.

The South-South had the highest willingness to relocate at 92.6 percent, followed by the Southwest at 86.3 percent and Southeast at 75.7 percent.

Digital skills emerged as the most preferred training option nationally, selected by 52.7 percent of respondents. Technology and ICT were also viewed as having the highest industry potential, followed by agriculture and agro-processing.

SBM Intelligence recommended investment in inter-zonal economic corridors, digital skills infrastructure, improved access to credit and a national vocational qualification framework. It also called for better labour market data and measures to address nepotism in public-sector recruitment.

The organisation, however, cautioned that its sample over-represented urban and educated Nigerians, with 56.8 percent of respondents living in urban areas and 38.6 percent holding an HND or bachelor’s degree.