Weeks before the election, South Africa’s jobless rate rises once more

The unemployment rate in South Africa increased to 32.9% in the first quarter of this year from 32.1% in the previous quarter, according to figures released on Tuesday. This is two weeks before an election in which voters are particularly concerned about unemployment.

The official unemployment rate has increased for the second consecutive quarter, putting it closer to the all-time high of more over 35% that was attained in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Opinion surveys indicate that the ruling African general Congress (ANC), which has ruled South Africa since the end of apartheid, may lose its majority in the upcoming general election on May 29.

In the thirty years since the party took office, the unemployment rate has increased by roughly ten percentage points.

The World Bank estimates that over 60% of South Africans are impoverished, while official statistics reveal that more than one-third of the country’s citizens receive cash grants and other forms of assistance.

Over 6 million people took use of a new benefit that the ANC government established for the working-age jobless during the pandemic. It was supposed to be only temporary, but earlier this year it was extended.

According to Statistics South Africa, the number of jobless individuals increased from 7.895 million in the final three months of the previous year to 8.226 million in the first three months of this year.

In January through March, 41.9% of people were unemployed, down from 41.1% in the previous three months, according to an extended definition of unemployment that takes into account people who are discouraged from looking for work.