The National Bureau of Statistics and Dr. Yemi Kale, a former statistician general, disagreed on the recently announced unemployment figure of 4.1%.
remembers that, using the updated approach, the NBS reported on Thursday last week that the unemployment rate for the first quarter of 2023 was 4.1%.
In response to the statistic, Kale criticised the NBS’s approach for generating the most recent unemployment figures during an appearance on Arise Television on Monday.
According to him, 20 hours of labour in Nigeria would provide the same amount of revenue as one hour of work in the US.
The purpose of data, according to Kale, is to provide policymakers with tools to address issues.
The 20 hours (old approach) were chosen because it was decided that if you worked for that long, you could be able to earn enough money to be equivalent to working one hour in the US. You may then make a few additional comparisons.
“However, policymakers are unable to use it, and I must reiterate that the most crucial use of data is to offer information for policy, not for comparative analysis across borders. Comparing to other countries is beneficial, he added.
Wakili Ibrahim, the head of the National Bureau of Statistics’ communications and public relations department, however, claimed the new technique was in line with international norms in a statement in response to Kale.
“The new technique is widely regarded. All of our bordering African nations now employ the new one-hour approach, he claimed.
NBS unemployment in Nigeria was 33.3% in the second quarter of 2020.
