Unemployment and Migration in Nigeria, An Empirical Investigation

Abstract

This study empirically accessed the effect of unemployment on migration in Nigeria over a period of thirty- three years (i.e. from 1990 to 2022). Total unemployment, male unemployment, female unemployment and urban unemployment were used as proxies of unemployment while net migration rate was used to proxy migration. The study employed time series data which were sourced from National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and World Bank Development Index (WDI). Augmented Dickey-Fuller (ADF) statistic, Bounds cointegration test and Auto regressive Distributive Lag (ARDL) approach were the techniques of data analysis adopted. The data analysis was executed by E Views 12.0. The findings of the study revealed that total unemployment rate, female unemployment and urban unemployment have a positive and significant impact on net migration rate in Nigeria while male unemployment has a positive and insignificant impact on net migration rate in Nigeria. The study concluded that unemployment is a major factor that encourages migration in Nigeria. The study recommended that government should promote policies and initiatives that stimulate economic growth and diversification to create more job opportunities by supporting industries with high employment potential, such as agriculture, manufacturing, and technology.