South African Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi wants to add as many as 2 million new jobs before the next elections as the nation grapples with one of the highest unemployment rates in the world.
About 12 million South Africans are without jobs. Unemployment according to the expanded definition, which includes people who were available for work but not looking for a job, is at 45.5% — the highest rate on a list of 82 countries monitored by Bloomberg — although some of the data is outdated. Africa’s most-industrialised nation will go to the polls to elect its next president in 2024.
Nxesi’s jobs target adds up to the amount of people who were rendered unemployed at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. Strict labour laws, stagnant productivity, bureaucratic hurdles and a skills shortage have reduced the ability of South African companies to hire additional workers.
“Whether or not that is
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