A Theoretical Investigation of Platform Cooperativism as an Alternative Governance Model for Nigeria’s Gig Economy

The rapid growth of platform-based gig work in Nigeria's urban economies, including ride-sharing, food delivery, and digital freelancing, has created a new class of economically precarious informal workers who lack the collective bargaining power, social protection, and economic security that formal employment provides. Platform cooperativism, which proposes that digital platforms be owned and governed collectively by their worker-users, offers a theoretically promising but empirically untested response. This study conducted a theoretical investigation of platform cooperativism as an alternative governance model for Nigeria's gig economy. A multi-method theoretical research design was employed, encompassing critical review of platform cooperativism theory, political economy analysis of Nigeria's gig economy structure, and prospective design and feasibility analysis. The critical review analysed 55 publications on platform cooperativism, digital labour platforms, and cooperative economics (2018 to 2024). Political economy analysis documented the governance structures, value distribution patterns, and worker welfare outcomes of Nigeria's five largest digital labour platforms through regulatory documents, platform terms of service, and interviews with 60 platform workers in Lagos, Abuja, and Kano. Design analysis developed a Platform Cooperative Architecture for the Nigerian context, addressing governance structure, technology infrastructure requirements, regulatory compliance, and cooperative law implications. The study generates four original theoretical propositions on the enabling and constraining conditions for platform cooperative viability in Nigeria, constituting an original contribution to both platform cooperativism theory and Nigerian cooperative economics literature.

Keywords: platform cooperativism, gig economy, Nigeria, digital labour platforms, cooperative governance