Youth Unemployment in Nigeria “ticking time bomb”: President of Catholic Bishops’ Conference

The consequences of not addressing the challenge of youth unemployment in Nigeria can be far-reaching, the President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) has said.

In his opening address at the First 2025 CBCN Plenary Assembly on Sunday, March 9, Archbishop Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji linked the surge in crime in Africa’s most populous nation to joblessness.

“Unemployment among the youth is a ticking time bomb, as frustration and disillusionment make them easy targets for radicalization and recruitment into violent groups,” Archbishop Ugorji said at the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria (CSN) Resource Centre, Durumi Abuja.

The Local Ordinary of Nigeria’s Catholic Archdiocese of Owerri lamented, “This dismal atmosphere seems to condemn many jobless youths to a life of purposelessness and despair. It is pushing them towards criminal activities, including kidnapping, armed robbery, drug abuse, cybercrime (popularly called ‘yahoo plus’), and cultism. Many are seeking extraordinary spiritual powers for instant prosperity without working for it.”

“It is very worrisome that many of our youths are compromising their faith. They are being drawn to pagan shrines, native doctors, idolatry, amulets, charms, ritual killings, and even human sacrifice,” the Nigerian Catholic Archbishop said.
In his considered view, “Unless we address this menace, these young people will continue to be lured into dangerous cults and terrorist gangs, exacerbating insecurity in the country.”

He called on the Federal and State governments to take action to resolve the unemployment crisis, and added, “We cannot grow weary of urging the government at all levels to treat youth unemployment with urgency. If the government does not massively create job opportunities on an ongoing basis, it risks losing the battle against insecurity and violent crime.”

In his March 9 address, Archbishop Ugorji also weighed in on Nigeria’s incarcerated youths. He faulted the state of Nigerian correctional centers, calling for the protection of the rights inmates.

“Despite former President Buhari’s efforts at reforming our federal correctional centers, the reality remains largely grim. These facilities are characterized by outdated, dilapidated, and unsanitary conditions,” the CBCN President lamented.

He further lamented, “Inmates are crammed into overcrowded, squalid cells. A cell meant for five people may hold as many as twenty, forcing them to sleep in shifts due to a lack of space.”

“Essential amenities such as food, clean water, and medical care are often scarce, making life in these centers unbearable,” the 73-year-old Catholic Archbishop, who started his Episcopal Ministry in July 1990 as Bishop of Nigeria’s Umuahia Diocese said.

He continued, “Depending on the correctional center, between 60% and 90% of inmates are still awaiting trial. Many suspects spend years behind bars—sometimes longer than the sentences they would have received if promptly convicted.”

Archbishop Ugorji also decried the physical and psychological abuse in Nigerian prisons as “inhuman and degrading.” For him, “such treatment exposes them (inmates) to severe emotional distress, including anxiety and depression. Their mistreatment is an affront to human dignity and fundamental rights.”

Archbishop Ugorji urged the judiciary to speed up legal processes to prevent unnecessary prolonged imprisonment. He added, “Inhuman treatment, extended detention without trial, and violations of fundamental rights in our correctional centers undermine our judicial system and perpetuate injustice.”

The Local Ordinary of Owerri Archdiocese since his installation in June 2022 further expressed concern about Nigeria’s worsening security crisis and economic hardships.

“While the economic reforms introduced by President Bola Tinubu’s administration aims at stabilizing the economy in the long term, they have significantly triggered sky-rocketing inflation, drastically reduced the purchasing power of Nigerians, and plunged millions into poverty,” he noted.

On insecurity, Archbishop Ugorji said that “more and more communities are being terrorized, traumatized, displaced, impoverished and their ancestral homes taken over by their conquerors.”

“Enough of this senseless brutality! Enough of this barbarism! This carnage must stop!” he said, and added, “While we appreciate the efforts of the security operatives, who put their lives on the line to fight the criminals and put an end to their savagery, we wonder why the government has not deployed high technology to complement the efforts of security operatives.”

To reverse this trend, CBCN President called for the “full implementation of the corrections reform initiated by the Buhari administration, so that justice and human dignity are upheld in our nation.”

Abah Anthony John contributed to this story.