Nigeria has lower manufacturing employment than other industries for several reasons, including it share to Gross domestic product. Nigeria’s manufacturing sector contributes less than 10 percent of the nation’s GDP. This suggests that the sector’s overall economic production is weak, which may restrict its ability to provide job opportunities to the teeming populace. This study investigates the impact of manufacturing output on employment in Nigeria. The Autoregressive Distributive Lag (ARDL) estimation technique was used to establish the long run relationship among the variables. It was revealed that long run relationship exists among the variables in the estimated model. The results of the Error Correction Mechanism (ECM) within the framework of the ARDL shows that the development of the manufacturing sector is one of the key strategies for the creation of employment opportunities in Nigeria. The study recommends; the development and diversification of the manufacturing sector as one of its top long-term policy strategies for the creation of employment for Nigerians. It also suggests that policies aimed at attracting foreign investment in this sector could positively impact on employment generation. This can be accomplished by providing incentives to the operators of the manufacturing sector, such as import waivers on essential imported inputs, providing and guaranteeing large commercial trading businesses to enter the manufacturing of their products through licensing, facilitating and acting as surety in franchise agreements with foreign manufacturers, and any other incentive to help lower the manufacturing sector’s cost of production. Hence, the government must prioritize the development of the manufacturing sector by providing necessary support and incentives to attract more investors and increase local production, which will lead to job creation and economic growth for Nigerians.
Keywords: ARDL, Employment, Nigeria, manufacturing exports
