Tinubu Tells Nigerian Youths They Deserve More Than Explanations, But Where Are the Jobs?

President Bola Tinubu has told Nigerian youths that they deserve more than explanations about the economic difficulties facing the country. It is an acknowledgement of the frustrations confronting millions of young Nigerians, but it also raises a question his administration must be prepared to answer: where are the jobs?

Tinubu made the statement in an address delivered by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, at the closing ceremony of the 2026 National Youth Conference in Abuja on Monday, November 9.

“I know that these reforms have come with sacrifices. But I also know that young Nigerians deserve more than explanations about the difficulties of today,” the president said.

He added that young Nigerians deserved to see tomorrow’s opportunities becoming realities in their lives.

The president’s statement sounds reassuring, but it is difficult to separate it from the responsibility of the office he occupies. Tinubu is not an opposition politician commenting on the country’s economic difficulties from outside government. He is the president, and creating an environment where Nigerians can find decent employment and earn sustainable incomes is one of the central responsibilities of his administration.

Since assuming office in May 2023, his government has defended its economic reforms, particularly the removal of petrol subsidy and the unification of the foreign exchange market, as necessary measures to stabilise the economy and attract investment.

However, while the administration continues to explain the long-term benefits of these policies, millions of Nigerians are still waiting to experience meaningful improvements in their livelihoods.

The employment statistics raise important questions

The National Bureau of Statistics’ Nigeria Labour Force Survey for the second quarter of 2024 put Nigeria’s unemployment rate at 4.3 per cent.

On the surface, that figure might appear encouraging. But looking at the broader employment picture reveals challenges that cannot be ignored.

The same NBS survey showed that 93 per cent of employed Nigerians were engaged in informal employment, while 85.6 per cent were self-employed.

Time-related underemployment stood at 9.2 per cent, while 12.5 per cent of young people aged 15 to 24 were neither in employment, education nor training.

These figures deserve attention because being classified as employed does not necessarily mean having a stable job, earning a decent income or enjoying the benefits associated with formal employment.

Indeed, Nigeria’s unemployment measurement counts people who worked for pay or profit for at least one hour during the reference week as employed, provided they meet the relevant criteria.

Consequently, the unemployment rate alone cannot adequately describe the difficulties facing young Nigerians who survive through irregular trading, casual work and other forms of informal economic activity.

The issue is not simply whether Nigerians are doing something to earn money. It is whether the economy is creating enough productive, secure and sustainable opportunities for them.

Government programmes must produce measurable results

Tinubu’s administration has repeatedly highlighted programmes intended to improve the economic prospects of young Nigerians.

Among them are the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), the Three Million Technical Talent programme (3MTT), YouthCred and the Nigerian Youth Academy.

These initiatives address important areas, including education financing, technical skills, access to credit and entrepreneurship.

However, the existence of a programme is not proof that the employment challenge has been adequately addressed.

For instance, the federal government said in December 2025 that 30,000 young Nigerians had undergone training under the 3MTT programme. It also highlighted the programme’s target of training three million Nigerians and creating two million technology jobs.

Training thousands of young people is a worthwhile intervention, but the critical question is how many participants have secured sustainable employment, how many have established viable businesses and how many of the promised technology jobs have actually materialised.

Similarly, in his May 29, 2026 anniversary statement, Tinubu’s administration attributed more than 300,000 jobs to its Renewed Hope housing programme and related housing projects.

That claim deserves proper scrutiny, including information about the nature of the jobs, their duration, the number of people employed and the extent to which the opportunities have reached young Nigerians.

Government job-creation claims should be accompanied by transparent, independently verifiable data rather than headline figures that leave the public unable to assess their actual impact.

Young Nigerians need more than promises

The president’s acknowledgement that young Nigerians deserve more than explanations should also mean accepting that his administration must be judged by measurable outcomes.

It is understandable that economic reforms can involve difficult adjustments, and it would be unreasonable to suggest that every employment challenge can be resolved overnight.

Nevertheless, economic hardship cannot become a permanent justification for the absence of visible progress.

Young Nigerians need an economy where university graduates can find meaningful employment, skilled workers can earn decent wages, entrepreneurs can access affordable financing and small businesses can grow without being overwhelmed by operating costs.

They also need an environment where opportunities are based on ability and hard work rather than political connections, personal influence or privilege.

The government must therefore move beyond announcing training programmes, loans and investment initiatives to regularly publishing verifiable information about the jobs created, the beneficiaries reached and the sustainability of those opportunities.

The Ministry of Youth Development, the Ministry of Labour and other relevant agencies should be able to demonstrate how government interventions are translating into employment and improved livelihoods.

The president must be held to his own words

Tinubu told Nigerian youths that they deserve more than explanations. That statement should not be treated merely as another reassuring presidential message at a national gathering.

It should become a standard against which his administration is assessed.

If young Nigerians deserve opportunities, then the government must demonstrate where those opportunities are, how many people have benefited and what measurable improvements have been achieved since May 2023.

The president cannot permanently separate himself from the economic realities confronting the people by pointing to the difficulties inherited by his administration or the sacrifices required by his reforms.

He leads the government responsible for addressing those realities.

Nigerian youths have heard promises about economic recovery, skills development, entrepreneurship and job creation. What they increasingly need is evidence that these promises are translating into decent work and better living conditions.

Tinubu is right that young Nigerians deserve more than explanations. But the more important question is whether his government is prepared to deliver the opportunities they have been promised.

For a generation struggling to find its place in an economy full of uncertainties, tomorrow’s promises are no substitute for today’s opportunities.