Unemployment in South Africa rises to 27.5 percent

By Hassan Isilow

JOHANNESBURG (AA) - Unemployment rate in South Africa has increased to 27.5 percent in the third quarter of 2018 compared to 27.2 percent in the previous quarter, according to official data released Tuesday.

Statistics South Africa said the number of unemployed people rose by 127,000 to 6.2 million in the third quarter representing the period from July to September.

The statistics office said that the formal sector, private households and agriculture recorded declines in employment.

When the total number of South Africans who have given up in search for jobs is added, the number of unemployed people rises to 9.8 million.

“The percentage of young persons aged 15-24 years who were not in employment, education or training increased by 0.8 of a percentage point to 31.1 percent,” said Statistics South Africa, adding that females were the most affected.

Africa’s most industrialized economy has been facing slow economic growth, slipping into a technical recession in the second quarter of this year.

Last week, Finance Minister Tito Mboweni recalled the country’s growth forecast for 2018 from 1.5 percent to 0.7 percent.

Mboweni also said the country should stop borrowing at its current rate and cut down on the civil service wage bill.

Some mining companies have already announced retrenchment plans as commodity prices keep falling, but the government has asked them to reconsider their decision.

This month, President Cyril Ramaphosa held both a job and investment summit, urging investors to inject money into the economy so as to create more jobs.