Does Energy Access Reduce Unemployment? An Empirical Evidence from Nigeria

The need for growth and development in Nigeria has been emphasized by regional economic communities. Key among determinants of economic development that has occupied recent discussion are access to energy and job creation. This study investigated the impact of energy access on unemployment in Nigeria from 1990 to 2023. The study proxy energy access and climate change by volume of electricity generated, electricity consumed and access to electricity while unemployment was measured by unemployment rate. The study used annual time series data sourced mainly from the International Energy Agency and the World Bank. The data analytical techniques used include: descriptive statistics, unit root test as well as Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) approach. The findings showed that volume of electricity generated, electricity consumed and access to electricity have negative but significant effect on unemployment rate in Nigeria in both short run and long run. This implies that access to energy (electricity) has very serious implication on job creation. Consequent upon these findings, the study concluded that energy access plays a vital role in reducing unemployment in Nigeria. The study therefore recommended increase effort toward electricity generation, effective implementation of electricity pricing regulation policy and electricity metering policy.