Youth Unemployment in South Africa

Do young people have the right skills ?

Structural unemployment

The result of a mismatch of skills-set that unemployed job seekers have and the skill-set that employers demand. (Mataschke, 2020). This one of the most important arguments around this topic. Even with slow job creation, there is still an argument among researchers on this topic that much of the youth in South Africa does not have the required skills to be employed.

With fewer skills to find high paying jobs or to transition to better ones, most of the youth finds themselves with only low wage jobs that require low skills. Many are discouraged with low wages and jobs in the informal sector become more attractive. However, a closer look at skills offered by higher education institutions points to the contrary.

Science, engineering and technology (SET) fields of study have the highest demand in the labor market. Universities are aware of this demand and have adjusted their enrollment plans to respond to it. According to the Post-School Education and Training Monitor 2021 report from the Department of Higher Education, SET fields in public universities have the highest enrollments and have contributed to the highest number of graduates between 2010 and 2019. This is a positive sign that South Africa has the potential to produce graduate with the required skills in the labor market. This also suggests that there should not be a skill-mismatch problem in the labor market since universities are aware of what skills graduates need to enter the workforce.

However, between 2017 and 2022, the youth were more likely to be employed in community and services and finance industries. Compared to adults, younger generations are more likely to be employed in low-skilled jobs. This is to their disadvantage because the jobs with the most demand require high skills.

Source: DHET Higher Education Information System (2020a)

This is a list of some of the jobs in highest demand by the labor market in South Africa. The majority of these jobs are Science, engineering and technology (SET)-based and require high skills in these fields. Universities have this information and it should also signal the youth to seek out these sought after skills either through universities, training institutions or apprenticeships.

The graph above compares the percentage of the population aged 25 and over with at least a bachelor's or its equivalent degree in different countries in 2017. Even though graduates have the desired skills of South Africa's labor market, this graph demonstrates that many of its young adults who can be part of the labor force have a low level of education which corresponds with lower skillset.
With only 8.2% of the population aged 25 and plus having completed a bachelor's degree or its equivalent, South Africa loses a considerable part of the population that could grow its economy with a higher skillset. A workforce with a higher skillset like in developed countries corresponds to more technological advancement, innovation, productivity and increased economic growth.
South Africa's performance in the education level of its young adults is only higher compared to low-income countries such as Sri Lanka (4.2%), Burundi (0.9%), and Senegal (2.8%). European and middle-income countries like Brazil (15.7%), Mexico (15.4%), the United Kingdom (33.9%) and Belgium (34.7%) have higher proportions of adults with degrees compared to South Africa.