6 Major Reasons for Youth Unemployment in South Africa

The overwhelming unemployment has taken the form of a monster, expanding relentlessly and affecting all the citizens of South Africa. Some experts claim that controlling unemployment has become an unachievable dream in South Africa, while others say we should take extraordinary measures to provide people with bread and butter.

In these two opinions, a young person who recently graduated from a renowned institute in South Africa is confused about his future. He is unable to understand the causes and reasons behind youth unemployment in South Africa and the end results of this daunting challenge.

I cannot summarize the data as unemployment is a burning issue, so come with me to see the details related to youth unemployment.

1. Slow Economic Growth

The economy’s growth ratio can directly influence the number of opportunities for newcomers in the region. For example, if a region is unable to grow the economy, and cannot convince industries, companies, and firms in the country to make more money, it cannot provide sufficient opportunities to the people.

On the other hand, a country is persistently growing the economy by planting new industries, and encouraging companies to invest in the cities, which can produce opportunities for newcomers.

Given this context, if we analyze South Africa’s situation, we can spot that the country’s economic growth is very slow. The country’s long-term potential growth is only 3.5%, while other countries are expected to grow their economy by 10% to 15% in the future. Slow economic growth does not mean that South Africa is not making progress, but it indicates that the speed of progress is very slow and that it cannot rapidly change the country’s situation.

If economic growth is slow and the country is unable to plant new industries, encourage companies, or bring investment to the country, it directly affects unemployment rates. The majority of educated people are coming to the job market in industries and companies, but the organizations do not have positions to offer them. That’s why the youth, especially newly graduated people, suffer from unemployment.

2. Structural Unemployment

The slow economy can be solved, and we can increase the speed of economic growth of our country if we take measures. But there is a problem that has severely reduced job opportunities for people. Structural unemployment is a major problem that is persistently damaging our country and stopping youth from advancing forward in their financial careers.

When the available skills of professionals do not match the demanded skills in the job sector, a gap between aspirants and positions is created, which is called structural unemployment. We can see that the country’s education system is promoting certain fields which are no longer required, but careers are not in demand.

For example, we can see that the number of petroleum engineers, civil engineers and mining engineers is increasing in the country, but the job positions for all these young enthusiasts are occupied by their seniors. Basically, the number of petroleum, civil, and mining industries is limited, and they release a certain number of job positions every year, but the professionals are available in more than demand, so most of them remain unemployed.

On the other hand, the new emerging fields, such as software engineering, professional healthcare, or AI specialization, are offering people the opportunity to join, but a limited number of citizens are familiar with these skills. The job positions in these industries and organizations remain empty due to the unavailability of skilled professionals.

Structural unemployment is long-term unemployment in which the controlling body needs to work on the citizens, train them with new skills, spread awareness about emerging jobs, organize workshops on emerging fields, and provide free education in the newly developed discipline. So the people acquire trending careers and unemployment rates go down.

3. Apartheid Legacy

The apartheid legacy still haunts South Africa and has badly affected the employment rates. Global data suggest that countries with more racial segregation also have high unemployment rates, which impact the economy and create a gap between people and opportunities in the future.

Everyone is aware of the fact that South Africa is one of those nations that has suffered extreme colonization rule and later apartheid government, which ruined the peace of people.

White supremacy and racial discrimination are some of the biggest reasons for unemployment. There are institutes and certain departments in which people of a certain race are able to secure job positions while others are considered aliens. The high racial discrimination influences the unemployment rates in a way that strengthens a small group of people in the country.

When a group of limited people is strong and consumes more resources than they require, others remain deprived of the resources and gradually become weakened as a consequence. The rule applies to all institutions and departments in South Africa. To help job-deprived individuals, our government discourages racial segregation and discrimination in the region.

4. Demographic Changes

South African demographic changes also play a cornerstone in rising unemployment rates. The country’s population is based on young people, and a significant portion of them are ready to enter the job market. Another factor that triggers young people to enter the job market is poverty as people are unable to start a business so they seek an opportunity to make bread and butter.

A factor I would like to add is the demographic changes and rapid urbanization. Cape Town and Johannesburg have been large and busy metropolitan areas of the country within the past few years. Thousands of people are moving to these cities from rural areas to seek job opportunities.

5. Government Policies

Some claim that the government is taking all measures to provide opportunities to young people. But if we observe situations examining the past policies of the government and their current status, we can easily conclude that the government policies play a cornerstone in raising the unemployment rates. For example, our government did not take action when the international companies left the country during the days of COVID-19.

The government was also silent during the economic recession of the post-COVID period when companies, industries, and employers were firing their workers and employees. Instead of creating opportunities for the people, the government granted financial benefits to the unemployed. In my opinion, the government should develop policies and design a complete structure for the next 20 to 30 years in which it aims to produce more jobs and earning opportunities.

6. A Large Number Of Immigrants

South Africa was a hub of opportunities before COVID-19, and it started with 2009 job production policies. Around these days, people from neighboring countries migrated to South Africa; Namibians, Bostowanian or Zimbabwean citizens came to our region for investment and job opportunities.

In the beginning, it helped South Africa generate a high amount of revenue, but over time, the immigrants replaced South Africans in the job market. It has also damaged South Africa’s job market, where demand for citizens is low compared to foreigners. A large number of immigrants is a reason for high unemployment rates.

South African youth are deprived of job opportunities as thousands of graduates and millions of matric certificate holders are searching for job opportunities. The reasons behind high unemployment rates are slow economic growth, structural unemployment, failed government policies, apartheid legacies and demographic changes in the country.

However, we can control these problems and produce job opportunities if we change our direction towards the path of progress; anyhow, I hope this information will help you in future; thank you.