Rosevitha Ndumbu
As Namibia gears up for its Presidential and National Assembly elections in November 2024, the nation finds itself at a crossroads where the employment aspirations of its youth intersect with the fundamental fabric of its democracy.
In the 2019 Presidential and National Assembly elections, young people constituted more than 60% of registered voters, and that number could well increase to over 70% in the 2024 elections. The youth vote can thus be expected to be the determining factor in these elections and political parties need to start speaking to and addressing that which matters most to the youth: Unemployment.
Youth unemployment in figures
Namibia’s youth face major challenges in a constrained economy with high unemployment. The most recent Labour Force Survey, released in 2018, revealed that unemployment among the country’s youth stood at an astounding 46.1% and has undoubtedly risen since then. Political leaders have warned repeatedly that the youth unemployment crisis could lead to social unrest and the protest against joblessness by discontented youth on Namibia’s Independence Day in 2023 which turned violent is a perfect example of this.
Findings by Afrobarometer’s 2021 national survey shows that unemployment is by far the most important problem that young Namibians want their government to address as about 64% of the youth cite it amongst their top three concerns. The status of youth currently is that they are more educated compared to their older counterparts but they are still less likely to have a job. About 79% of Namibian youth have secondary or post-secondary schooling, compared to only 67% in the 36-55 age group and the number is even lower for those in the over-55 age group. It is thus not surprising that elected leaders received relatively low approval ratings from Namibian youth given their perceived failure to address this issue or that young Namibians are generally unimpressed with their government’s performance on their priority issues as only 16% of young survey respondents say the government is performing “well” on job creation.
Political and civic engagement
With the bleak picture painted above, one would expect young people would be at the forefront of exercising their democratic right to vote in order to ensure that they elect people who they believe can adequately address their concerns.
However, young people are generally less likely than their elders to vote in elections and unfortunately, this observation rings true in Namibia, too. Although young people may register to vote, registration and actual voting are two different processes and they usually do not turn up for the latter. Young people need to not only register to vote but actually show up to the voting polls.
According to Afrobarometer, only 61% of youth say they voted in the last elections, compared to 79% of middle-aged and 81% of older citizens. The gap between youth and seniors who voted is 20 percentage points, more than enough to determine an election result. Young people in Namibia are also less likely than the older generations to identify with a political party as less than half of young respondents say they “feel close” to a party compared to 63% of their senior counterparts.
They are also less likely to participate in several other forms of political and civic activity such as attending community meetings, contact a traditional leader or a regional councillor, political party official, or member of Parliament.
Way forward
The pervasive problem of youth unemployment cannot be overstated. It is one that needs urgent interventions for continued national peace and stability.
At the same time, there’s an undeniable call of action for the youth to take full advantage of civic and political avenues to make their voices and priorities heard. Looking ahead to the 2024 elections, concrete solutions to the youth unemployment crisis could be the winning formula for political parties and for Namibia’s youth.
By leveraging their collective voting power, the youth have the potential to steer political discourse towards policies that prioritise job creation, skills development, and sustainable growth. May the youth decide at the polls whether the 2024 ballot is for jobs.
*Rosevitha Ndumbu is a research associate with the Institute for Public Policy Research