Brand South Africa welcomes the decrease in South Africa’s unemployment rate which declined by 0.4% points from 27.5% at the end of the third quarter to 27.1% for the 2018-2019 financial year end.
The Quarterly Labour Force Survey states that there are 16.5 million employed people and 6.1 million unemployed people between the ages of 15 and 64 years in South Africa.
According to Stats SA, the working-age population increased by 149,000 or 0.4% in the fourth quarter compared to the third quarter of the same year while comparison of the 4th quarter in 2017 shows an increase to 608,000 or 1.6%. The increase was in the finance, private households, manufacturing and mining sectors.
Commenting on the latest unemployment statistics, Brand South Africa’s General Manager for Research, Dr Petrus de Kock said: “The year 2018 saw numerous initiatives being launched with the aim of kick reviving South Africa’s economy. These statistics are evidence that these interventions are beginning to work in reigniting our economy. Some of the initiatives include the inaugural South Africa Investment Conference in October last year provided great impetus to our drive to mobilise R1.2 trillion in investment over five years. The Investment Conference attracted around R300 billion in investment pledges from South African and international companies.”
The Presidential Jobs Summit hosted in September 2018 also resulted in concrete agreements between various stakeholders. These agreements, which are now being implemented by social partners, aim to create 275,000 additional direct jobs every year.
In his second State of the Nation Address which was hosted in Cape Town on Thursday 07 February, President Cyril Ramaphosa focused on measures which will be undertaken this year to accelerate inclusive economic growth and job creation. The President indicated that projects to the value of R187 billion are being implemented and projects worth another R26 billion are in pre-implementation phase stemming from the Investment Conference.
“Over the past year, we have focused our efforts on accelerating inclusive growth, significantly increasing levels of investment and putting in place measures to create more jobs. Drawing on the valuable lessons we’ve learnt, through a more focused effort, and through the improvements we’re making in the business environment, we aim to raise even more investment this year. We will be identifying the sectors and firms we want and need in South Africa and actively attract investors. Based on our experiences over the past year, and to build on the momentum achieved, we will host the South Africa Investment Conference again this year,” said President Ramaphosa.
For more information or to set up interviews, please contact:
| Tsabeng Nthite
Tel: +27 11 712 5061 Mobile: +27 (0) 76 371 6810 Email:tsabengn@brandsouthafrica.com Visit brandsouthafrica.com |
