Youth aged 15-24 records highest unemployment rate in Q1 of 2023

62.1% of young South Africans between the ages of 15-24 are without jobs.

Statistics South Africa released the latest unemployment figures in Pretoria today.

The data agency also revealed that graduate unemployment rate increased from 5.5% in 2013 to 10.6% in the first quarter of 2023.

The country’s official unemployment rate sits at a staggering 32.9% in the first quarter of 2023.

This is a 0.2% increase from the fourth quarter of 2022.

“There were 179 000 more people who were unemployed in the first quarter of 2023 than in the fourth quarter of 2022.”

Stats SA also indicated that unemployment among the Black African population remains higher than the national average and other population groups.

According to the data agency, Black African women continue to be the most vulnerable with an unemployment rate of 39.9% in Q1:2023.

This is 4.5% percentage points higher than the national average for women at 35.4%.

Economist, Dawie Roodt, says given the skyrocketing unemployment figures chances of young people getting employed are very slim.

He, however, says this is parallel to the young people not wanting to start their own businesses because it’s risky.

“The education system is to be blamed for this because people are educated for qualifications and not skills. The quality of the education in South Africa is horrible compared to the rest of the world,” says Roodt.

He added that the main reason why the country cannot create jobs is because the economy is not growing.

The Democratic Alliance has attributed the high unemployment numbers to poor governance and the rolling power cuts.

The party warns that this is a ticking time bomb.

“An analysis of these figures reveals that the ANC government’s inability to ensure a stable power supply is exacerbating this crisis. Even more alarming is the revelation that 3.7 million young people, accounting for 36.1% of the 15-24 age group, are not in employment, education, or training.

This is a ticking time bomb, threatening to explode with catastrophic social and economic consequences.

The ANC government’s failure to address this crisis leaves a generation in limbo and a nation on the brink of disaster.”