Nigeria’s Graduate Unemployment Crisis: A Generation Abandoned 

PRESS STATEMENT

Date: August 20, 2025

Issued by: Society for the Welfare of Unemployed Youth of Nigeria (SWUYN)

NIGERIA’S GRADUATE UNEMPLOYMENT CRISIS: A GENERATION ABANDONED

The Society for the Welfare of Unemployed Youth of Nigeria (SWUYN) expresses deep concern over the findings of the recent Nigerian Graduate Report, which reveals that over 600,000 graduates enter Nigeria’s labour market annually, yet only about 10% find placement in formal employment.

This staggering reality confirms what millions of Nigerian youths already know not by data, but by personal experience. The remaining 90% are left to the mercy of survival, forced into hawking, okada riding, menial jobs, cybercrime, or crushing idleness.

This is not just an economic statistic it is a national indictment.

We cannot build a prosperous nation on abandoned talent.

Each year, our universities and polytechnics release bright, capable minds into a system that is either too weak, too corrupt, or too indifferent to absorb them. We are creating a cycle of hopelessness, frustration, and desperation that threatens not only our social stability but the moral fabric of our nation.

While the government celebrates “youth empowerment” in theory, the reality on the ground tells a different story. Without urgent and genuine intervention, Nigeria risks becoming a nation where education no longer guarantees hope, and where the youth become liabilities instead of assets.

We, therefore, call on the Federal Government, State Governments, the Ministry of Labour and Employment, and the private sector to:

1. Declare a State of Emergency on Graduate Unemployment

2. Launch a national database to track and engage unemployed graduates in productive initiatives

3. Revive and scale up youth-focused entrepreneurship grants and startup incubation hubs

4. Mandate compulsory national internship schemes across all ministries and agencies

5. Review educational curricula to align with 21st-century job demands and skills

It is unacceptable that millions of educated Nigerians have been reduced to economic wanderers. If these young minds are not empowered, they will become tools in the hands of extremism, crime, and societal unrest.

This is a national emergency, not a talking point.

We urge the media, civil society, religious leaders, and international development partners to amplify this message and join us in holding those in power accountable.

Nigeria must not continue to bury its future.

Our voices will not be silent. Our demands will not be ignored.

Signed:

Comr. David E.Monday

Acting National Media & Publicity Secretary,( SWUYN)

Comr. Ogbeide Oluwasegun

Acting National Public Relations Officer (PRO), (SWUYN)