Job creation can reduce poverty in Zimbabwe

Lazarus Sauti

Joblessness is simply the state of not having a job and it occurs when people are without work and actively seeking for one.

It is also is one of the most serious problems facing the country today and it is highly caused by many factors chiefly the defective education system.

The educational systems in Zimbabwe, for example, do not correspond directly to the economic realities prevailing outside the education system. Instead of training professionals with skills, theory instead of practical is the order of the day.

Thus, the education system is only producing individual whose services do not reflect the economic trends on the job market.

Furthermore, joblessness in Zimbabwe is fueled by the lack of vocational guidance and training facilities. For instance, most students in rural Zimbabwe remain ignorant of possible avenues of employment and choice of occupation after finishing secondary school.

It is without doubt that Zimbabwe is suffering due to joblessness and this is frustrating economic transformation.

Because of joblessness, the country is losing its human resources. Zimbabweans with adequate skills and competence are migrating to other countries or they are rather left unutilised.

On the effects of joblessness, Paul Frimpong of the University of Ghana and an Associate Chartered Economic Policy Analyst once said, “Joblessness leads to increase in poverty as it deprives a man of all sources of income.”

He was right. Due to joblessness, most Zimbabweans cannot satisfy the basic necessity of life. As a result, they are forced to practice in social ills such as dishonesty, gambling, bribery, theft and corruption.

According to recent statistics, the United Nations Food Programme estimates that the country’s unemployment rate is about 60 percent.

Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, it is believed, said Zimbabwe’s unemployment rate increased to 10.7 percent in 2011 from 4.20 percent in 2004.

Furthermore, the recently published 2012 Population Census National Report, stated that out of the country’s total population of 13 061 239, only 11 percent were unemployed.

“The total number of persons age 15 years and above was 7 661 295. Of this number, 5 120 540 were economically active. The total number of unemployed persons was 566 787.

“… all economically active persons 89 percent were employed while 11 percent were unemployed,” noted the national report.

While solid statistics are hard to come by, the majority of Zimbabwe’s workforce is involved in the informal sector.

The 2012 census results revealed that at least 3.7 million Zimbabweans are involved in informal sector activities and females, at 54.6 percent, made up the majority of the people employed in the informal sector.

Finance and Economic Development Minister Patrick Chinamasa is therefore of the view that since there were more economically active people in the informal sector compared to those in the formal sector, the country has to face the reality that the informal sector is now the dominant force of the economy.

“How can we tap value from the informal sector? They are not contributing value to the fiscus. There are no linkages between the formal and informal sector,” he said.

Accelerating industrialisation and addressing shortcomings of a large informal economy in the country are panaceas to joblessness. This is according to the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who further said accelerating industrialisation requires a focus on job creation and entrepreneurship.

“Accelerating industrialisation in Africa requires a focus on job creation and entrepreneurship.

“Focusing on job creation, entrepreneurship and the promotion of small and medium enterprises can boost inclusive and sustainable industrial development across the continent,” he said.

Ki-moon further stressed that job creation and entrepreneurship are key aspects to fully capture the potential of a dynamic work force and boosting inclusive sustainable development.

Since Ki-moon believes that faster economic growth is an effective means of generating more jobs, the Government must therefore increase resource allocation out of the national budget for employment creation and promotion activities.

Also, the Government should support struggling industries in order to save jobs. This means proper supervision and adequate resources should be invested in industries to support the employment base across the country.

The report “The centrality of employment to poverty eradication” provides that the creation of productive employment opportunities is essential for achieving poverty reduction and sustainable economic and social development.

The report goes further to say it is crucial to provide decent jobs that both secure income and empowerment for the poor, especially women and younger people.

“Given the importance of employment for poverty reduction, job-creation should occupy a central place in national poverty reduction strategies,” said the report, adding: “There should be a focus on creating better and more productive jobs, particularly those that can absorb the high concentrations of working poor.

“Among the necessary elements for creating such jobs are investing in labour-intensive industries, especially agriculture, encouraging a shift in the structure of employment to higher productivity occupations and sectors, and upgrading job quality in the informal economy.”

Consequently, efforts must be intensified to increase productivity and income through the informal sector.

The Government should therefore increase its effort in order to facilitate greater access of operators in the informal sector to the means of production such as land and capital.