section_path: Social situation, informal economy
section_name: Social situation, informal economy
paragraph_text: Social situation, informal economy
  
  There is a huge spectrum of wealth distribution among the people that reside in Lagos. It ranges from the very wealthy to the very poor. Lagos has attracted many young people and families seeking a better life from all other parts of Nigeria and beyond.
  
  In some parts of Lagos, residents have one of the highest standards of living in Nigeria and in Africa.
  
  Reliable data on unemployment, income below the subsistence level, etc. are hardly available for Lagos – as for the whole region – and must be taken with scepticism where they are provided, e.g. in other articles (see also the previous chapter). The reason for this is the widespread " informal economy " (not to be confused with " shadow economy ") in West Africa. Insufficient jobs in traditional wage labour force people to look for work elsewhere. This benefits the informal sector of the economy, where there is no minimum wage and workers pay no taxes, have no holiday or labour rights and often work in unsafe conditions.
  
  According to the International Monetary Fund, about 5.5 million people are employed in the informal economy in Lagos State alone – about three quarters of Lagos' workforce. Throughout Lagos, one can observe street vendors, artisans, sellers, small and micro enterprises, shared taxis, tricycles and motorbikes (okada drivers), domestic workers, market traders and others engaged in the informal sector.
  
  Activities in the informal economy are not included in economic statistics. As a result, the wealth of the population, but also e.g. unemployment, is significantly underestimated if the massive informal economy is not taken into account.