Author: A.T. Yakubu, H.I. Mobolaji, G.T. Ijaiya A.A. Kilishi and A.M. Yaru
Year:2012
Abstract: The ability of the formal sector (public and organized private sectors) in Nigeria to generate employment and provide means of livelihood has been truncated by the economic crisis that dates back to the 1980s. The informal sector therefore, serves as alternative means of survival and provides jobs to the teeming unemployed population in the country. This paper therefore, examines: job creation; income earning capacity, and poverty reduction in the informal sector. A total of 100 structured questionnaires were distributed to informal sector operators in Ilorin metropolis, and data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and regression analysis. A multi-dimensional
poverty index was computed using three dimensions and seven indicators. The results show that informal sector activities are an important source of employment and income. The operators employ between one minimum and fourteen people maximum, while the mean apprentice per operator was estimated at three. Most of the informal sector operators earn an average income of x8,468.42 per day. The study finds further, that the level of multi-dimensional poverty reduces with increase in daily savings and as operation becomes full time. The characteristics of multi-dimensional poverty is not different across different types of business in the informal sector. The paper therefore recommends that informal operators should be given more support so that they can operate on full time basis and be able to save more in order to combat unemployment and poverty through the informal sector.
poverty index was computed using three dimensions and seven indicators. The results show that informal sector activities are an important source of employment and income. The operators employ between one minimum and fourteen people maximum, while the mean apprentice per operator was estimated at three. Most of the informal sector operators earn an average income of x8,468.42 per day. The study finds further, that the level of multi-dimensional poverty reduces with increase in daily savings and as operation becomes full time. The characteristics of multi-dimensional poverty is not different across different types of business in the informal sector. The paper therefore recommends that informal operators should be given more support so that they can operate on full time basis and be able to save more in order to combat unemployment and poverty through the informal sector.