Nigeria From Hustle to Honour: Senate Bill Targets Informal Job Agency Abuses

In a country where much of the economy runs on side gigs and informal trades, a new Senate bill offers a rare promise: dignity for workers long overlooked. The Informal Sector Private Employment Agencies (Regulation) Bill 2025 has passed second reading in the Senate. It aims to license and monitor job agencies that place millions into domestic work, apprenticeships, and other unregulated roles.

Millions work in Nigeria’s informal sector, often without contracts, rights, or recourse. The new bill aims to change that, one licence at a time.

• Nigerian Senate advances a bill to regulate informal employment via licensed job agencies
• National Directorate of Employment (NDE) to oversee agency licensing and compliance
• Bill mandates fair recruitment practices and a centralised worker database
• Senator Musa highlights persistent abuse and poor conditions in the informal sector
• Senate Committee on Labour to review and report back within six weeks

If passed, the law could shift the balance toward accountability, offering informal workers more than just survival, but a system that sees and protects them.