The Gig Economy And Nigeria’s Unemployment Rate

Undoubtedly, the unemployment rate in Nigeria has really worsened, leaving many Nigerian youths via different social media platforms to question the effectiveness and promise of the current administration. Many Nigerian youths aged 18-30years, after their National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) spends virtually their days seeking for employments, while organizations and companies are also reducing their staffing capacity due to the current situation of the country, leaving many youths job stranded.

Accordingly, the National Bureau of Statistics in its Labour Force Statistics –Unemployment and underemployment report for Q3’18 had indicated that the rate of unemployment rose by 3.3 million or 19 percent to 20.9 million in Q3’18 from 17.6 million in Q3’17, while on quarterly basis, it rose by three percent from 20.3 million in Q2’18.

With the aforementioned, the high and ever increasing unemployment rate has been partly attributed to the low political will by successive administration to improve the employment generation schemes as well as create a favorable environment for small and medium scale enterprises to thrive. Equally, the neglect of the Gig economy by the millions of educated unemployed graduate in Nigeria negated Nigeria’s drive to curb the menace of unemployment.

What’s the Gig Economy?

A Gig economy is recognized as a free market system in which temporary positions are allowed and companies contract jobs to independent workers from any country for a short to long term engagement. The term “GIG” specifically implies assigning a job to a worker within a specified time frame and an example of gig workforce majorly include freelancers, project based worker, part-time hirer as well as independent contractors.

Importantly, the trend towards the GIG economy has evolved and approximately over 57miilion Americans are now freelancing and getting paid right at the comfort of their home. While some are full-time freelancers-neglecting their country job opportunities, the proliferation of freelance work has got a lot of people talking about a new kind of labor market – the GIG Economy.

What You Need To Know About Being A Freelancer?

Freelancing is an alternative work situation as it allows you to choose your time and day to work. Its allow you to set your own hours, work where you want, get paid what you are worth, allow you pick and choose your client and it increases your work and life schedules as well as overall happiness. However, it requires constant electricity, laptop/computer and a sufficient data subscription. A freelancer is currently recognized as a self-employed person who offers services to clients in any country. These services are often offered through legit websites like Fiverr.com, Upwork.com and Freelancer.com. Nearly every type of services needed by any organization can be provided by freelancers.

What’s the Deal? – My Personal Journey

My name is Joseph Temitope Victoria, a graduate of Geography and Regional Planning from Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ogun State and a Masters student in the University of Abuja, studying Population and Manpower Planning. I have been involved in freelancing for about two years now. I joined Freelancer.com in December 2017 as a result of losing my white collar job. I was an Abuja-based journalist working with an online media outfit. After 18months, the media outfit shut down and I couldn’t get another job because my master programme was quite inflexible. During this period, I got broken down and depressed since I have bills like house rent, school fees and other miscellaneous to pay. However, all of these problems became my less concern when a friend then, who is now my fiancée, introduced me to freelancing. For the first three month, I saw it as time wasting not until when I withdraw $500 to my domiciliary account in April 2018 after working for a company that paid me in Euros. Since then, I got the conviction and assurance of working from home and still get paid.

Yes! You will be questioned by friend and family and might even get discouraged – (I was once in this position, my parent didn’t like the idea. All they wanted was me returning back to the office), but the drive and the fun of learning new things got me to stick through. Currently, I work as a permanent ICT agent for two international companies (pandagossips.com and mebiotic.com) through freelancer. I get paid for each job given in dollars and withdraw via my Payoneer account or via wire withdrawal. Now, I find it even more interesting as I can withdraw weekly, quarterly and even monthly. I indulge educated unemployed graduates in the society, married couples, particularly nursing mothers at home, companies and organizations in Nigeria to take up the challenges of the GIG Economy by working on Freelancer.com, either as an employee or as an employer.

Registration on Freelancer.com

Freelancer.com is a marketplace of ideas, skills, and talents where anyone can work on what they love. The website has been up and running for years and it has since launched many products and features to help both employers and freelancers get work done. Because of the platform’s vastness, it may seem too daunting for a newbie. By signing up, you agree to the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy. You will be asked to provide a username. Note that once chosen, a username cannot be changed. Any username is expected to be alphanumeric (contains letters and/or numbers), start with a letter, and 16 characters at most.

Then you will be asked to select your account type. (Click the Work as a Freelancer Column). This can be changed anytime on your Account Settings page. After registration, you will be equally asked to verify your email address, and complete your account details

Importantly, to ensure you have the best possible protection in an unlikely event of a dispute, keep your communications and payments on Freelancer.com. Keep an eye out for projects that violate our Terms and Conditions as well.

How to Earn Money at Freelancer.com

Determine what you are good at, commit to a life of freelancing, and sign up for a Freelancer.com account: Signing up and working at Freelancer.com is absolutely free, but there are membership upgrades that will greatly help you to earn more, such as getting more bids per month, and a list of skills. Certain projects require your profile to reflect certain skills, so the more you have listed, the more opportunities you get. Head to this page to see what’s on offer.

Find projects and start bidding: Earning money at Freelancer.com actually begins here. Hundreds of projects and contests in different categories are posted each day. Find the ones you want to work on by regularly checking the Jobs or Contests page. In the jobs page, you’ll see suitable projects open for bidding. For contests, you simply submit an entry.

There are over 750 work categories in the Jobs page, from web development and writing, to marketing and accounting. Certainly, a job that matches your skills is listed here. Before placing your bid, make sure to write a compelling reason why the employer should pick you over everyone else. Not sure how the bidding process works? No problem, here: How to Bid.

Get paid and earn five-star feedback: Once you get paid, you can withdraw your money via PayPal, Wire Transfer, Payoneer Moneybookers, or your nominated local bank account (works through Express Withdrawal System). Also, always aim for five-star feedback – the accumulation of great, quality feedback is a great addition to your portfolio. (Copied)

Bottom Line on Freelancing

What all of the aforementioned comes down to is that being a freelancer and working in the gig economy implies taking a lot of responsibility for your own income. This is because you negotiate your pay. However, for further questions and knowledge, I can be reached via my email address or mobile number. Thanks and Happy Freelancing.