…pledges to make unemployment statistics public when ready
Muhammadu Dingyadi, Minister of Labour and Employment, has acknowledged that he does not have specific statistics of the unemployed Nigerians, despite the Ministry’s efforts to tackle the issue.
Dingyadi made this statement on Monday while appearing before the Senate Committee on Employment, Labour, and Productivity, chaired by Diket Plang (APC Senator from Plateau State).
Speaking on his three-month tenure as Minister, Dingyadi said, “We have been working tirelessly to address unemployment because it is our core responsibility.
“All the skills development programmes undertaken by the Ministry are geared towards combating unemployment.
Read also: Youth unemployment in Nigeria: Trends, challenges, and pathways to economic growth
“We are on top of the situation and determined to fight unemployment to a standstill.”
However, when asked about precise unemployment statistics, Dingyadi admitted he could not provide figures, saying: “By way of presenting figures, I don’t want to give you numbers that I am not certain about.
“But I want to assure you that we have these figures. We just didn’t come with them because we didn’t anticipate this question.”
He promised to compile the necessary data for the committee, stating, “We will coordinate with our parastatals and agencies working on this issue and make these figures available to you.
“Once ready, we can even make them public if required.”
The Committee Chairman praised President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to improving the welfare and working conditions of Nigerian workers, evidenced by the recent implementation of the new national minimum wage, which took effect on April 1, 2024.
He also commended the Ministry’s dedication to promoting employment opportunities and enforcing decent work standards, emphasizing that the revised budget allocation for 2024 would further support these efforts.
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