WINDHOEK – Even though the unemployment rate decreased in 2014 by 1.5 percent to 28.1 percent, the majority of Namibian households still survive on a monthly income of less than N$1 000.
These are households who depend on old-age pension grants, cash remittances from urban areas and income generated from subsistence farming.
The pittances that make up household incomes contrast badly with the national average wage of N$6 626 per month, and the N$21 749 monthly highest average wage across industries that was recorded in the mining and quarrying sector.
Of the 990 998 people classified as economically active, there are 712 752 who are employed, leaving 278 245 people unemployed, according to the Labour Force Survey 2014, released yesterday by the Namibia Statistics Agency’s acting Statistician General Liina Kafidi.
The country’s total population is pegged at 2 247 021 people, of whom 813 751 are children aged under 15 years.
Kafidi says the survey was conducted on a sample basis covering a representative 10 296 households that were selected from all 14 regions.
“It is the first survey of this kind to include the fourteenth region. Same methodologies, concepts and definitions were used to measure labour force indicators and this made it possible to compare data from the two previous labour force surveys,” said Kafidi. The survey had a 95 percent response rate compared to the 93.4 percent response of the previous survey.
Ohangwena Region recorded the highest unemployment, followed by Kavango East and Otjozondjupa regions, respectively. At fourth are Kunene and Oshana regions both featuring an unemployment rate of 32.6 percent.
The overall unemployment is higher for women than men, except for Ohangwena and Omusati where women unemployment is lower than that of males. Otjozondjupa and Omaheke have the highest unemployment rate for women while Ohangwena and Kavango East regions top the statistics for unemployment among men.
Among the throng of people searching for employment are university graduates, including those with doctorate degrees, as well as people with teacher training. These people make up 9.4 percent of the unemployed population, according to the survey.
Ironically, the level of education among those employed is dismally low, with only 1 percent of those employed having certificates and diplomas in various fields, and 6 percent having completed a course at a university or polytechnic and 1.1 percent of the employed possessing post-graduate diplomas, master’s degrees or PhDs. The majority, or 78 percent of the total employed population, have senior secondary education, with the rest of the employed population having junior secondary and primary education.
The report also shows that the agriculture and fisheries sector remain the largest employing industries, followed by the wholesale and retail trade, and at third position private households who employ nannies, gardeners, and housekeepers. Public administration and education are also large employers, even though they trail at the bottom of the top five employing sectors.
The report further notes an increase in informal employment, considering the number of employers whose businesses or ventures are neither registered with the Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ministry of Finance nor with the Social Security Commission. Businesses that employ less than five people were also considered as informal. Together these informal businesses have provided employment to 41.1 percent of the Namibian employed population of 712 752 people.
The report includes the number of people employed but classified as being ‘vulnerable workers’ because they are ‘in vulnerable employment’ where they are more at risk to the effects of economic cycles, have no formal work arrangements, or no access to benefits or social protection programmes. The number of vulnerable workers was found to be at 214 704 persons many of whom work in subsistence or communal farming.