The Political Economy of Unemployment and the Crisis of Youth Livelihoods in Nigeria: A Systematic Review
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21321446Keywords:
Political Economy, Youth Unemployment, Youth Livelihoods, Livelihood Crisis, Employment Policy.Abstract
Youth unemployment has emerged as one of the most persistent development challenges confronting Nigeria, with profound implications for economic productivity, social stability, and the livelihood security of young people. Despite numerous policy interventions and periodic economic growth, a significant proportion of Nigerian youths continue to experience unemployment, underemployment, and livelihood deprivation. Against this background, this paper examined the political economy of unemployment and the crisis of youth livelihoods in Nigeria through a systematic review of existing literature. Specifically, the paper investigated the political and economic factors contributing to youth unemployment, examined the effects of youth unemployment on the livelihoods and socio-economic well-being of young people, and reviewed policy interventions and institutional measures proposed for addressing youth unemployment and improving youth livelihoods in Nigeria. The paper was anchored on Political Economy Theory and Sustainable Livelihoods Theory. A systematic literature review approach based on the PRISMA framework was adopted, drawing evidence from peer-reviewed scholarly publications obtained from major academic databases. Data were analysed using thematic synthesis. The paper revealed that youth unemployment in Nigeria is driven by structural factors including economic dependence on the oil sector, weak industrialisation, governance deficits, policy inconsistency, insecurity, demographic pressures, and educational mismatch. The review further established that unemployment contributes to poverty, livelihood insecurity, social exclusion, migration, psychological distress, and vulnerability to criminal activities among youths. The paper concludes that youth unemployment is fundamentally a structural development challenge requiring long-term institutional and economic reforms. It therefore recommended employment-centred economic diversification, labour market-oriented educational reforms, and the strengthening of sustainable youth livelihood and entrepreneurship support programmes to enhance employment opportunities and livelihood security among Nigerian youths.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Salisu Ogbo Usman, Ph.D, Timothy Abayomi Atoyebi, Ph.D, Edime Yunusa, Ph.D (Author)
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