In a wide-ranging interview following the publication last week by Statistics South Africa of the country’s record high second quarter unemployment figures, Nxesi cites the education system as a key impediment to employment.
The labour minister also pointed to South Africa’s economic reconstruction and recovery plan as a practical solution out of the escalating joblessness, particularly among the youth.
- In the second quarter of 2021, the country’s official unemployment rate rose to 34.4%, according to data published in the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS). That is the highest rate recorded since the start of the QLFS in 2008.
- Most concerning, the joblessness rates among youth in the 15-25 and 25-34 brackets were 64.4% and 42.9% respectively.
“There is something which [Gauteng education chief] Panyaza Lesufi said, which I liked, and I am paraphrasing, ‘If we can’t get education
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