Build One South Africa (BOSA) has today written to the Speaker of the National Assembly (NA), Ms Thoko Didiza, – in terms of Rule 130 of the NA Rules – requesting a debate of urgent national importance on the stubbornly high unemployment rate in South Africa.
Today, the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) for Q4:2024 was released, revealing a concerning trend in long-term unemployment, which requires the urgent attention of Parliament.
The expanded unemployment rate has remained unchanged quarter on quarter – at 41.9% – indicating that the GNU government is unable to make any dent in our country’s unemployment scourge.
The GNU has not brought any new hope to the 11,4 million South Africans who are without a job or who have given up looking for one.
Therefore, we are using Section 130(1) of the Rules of the National Assembly which states that “a private member may request the Speaker in writing to schedule without delay an urgent matter of national public importance for discussion by the House”.
In 2014, there were 3.4 million South Africans classified as long-term unemployed. A decade later, this figure has almost doubled to 6.1 million. This stark increase in long-term unemployment highlights a systemic failure by the current government to address the root causes of joblessness.
The consequences of long-term unemployment extend beyond individual hardship, contributing to a cycle of poverty and inequality that hinders our collective progress as a nation.
We need a job for every young person who is not in school, university or vocational training. We cannot have a generation of young men and women sitting at home.
An urgent debate will provide Members of Parliament (MPs) with the opportunity to deliberate on actionable policies that can reverse the trend of rising unemployment and to hold the government accountable for its responsibilities to citizens.
Media Statement by
Roger Solomons: BOSA Acting Spokesperson
Tuesday 18 February 2025
Media Enquiries:
Roger Solomons – BOSA Acting Spokesperson – 072 299 3551