South Africa’s unemployment rate climbs weeks before election

AFRICAN BUSINESS AND ECONOMYMay 20, 2024 at 11:19 PM UTC

TLDR

South Africa's unemployment rate climbs to 32.9% in Q1, nearing the record high of 35.3% during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Increase marks second consecutive quarterly rise, posing challenges for governing African National Congress (ANC) ahead of upcoming elections.
Opinion polls suggest ANC, in power since apartheid's end, faces potential loss of parliamentary majority in May 29 national and provincial elections.

South Africa’s unemployment rate rose for the second consecutive quarter to 32.9% in the first three months of this year.

This increase from 32.1% in the previous quarter brings the official unemployment rate closer to the record high of 35.3% in late 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic. This rise comes just two weeks before the governing African National Congress (ANC) faces its most challenging election yet.

South Africans are set to vote in national and provincial elections on May 29, with opinion polls indicating that the ANC, which has been in power since the end of apartheid, is at risk of losing its parliamentary majority.

Key Takeaways

Over the past decade, the number of people in long-term unemployment—those who have not worked for a year or longer—has nearly doubled. The total number of unemployed individuals in South Africa now exceeds 8.2 million. Experts warn that as long as the economy continues to grow below 1% annually while the population grows at about 1.5%, the unemployment rate will continue to rise. Compounding the issue, policy measures have not successfully addressed the structural problems contributing to joblessness, such as the mismatch between graduates and available jobs. This persistent unemployment challenge underscores the need for effective economic policies and reforms.

South Africa

Unemployment

ANC

African National Congress

Elections

Economy