Unemployment figures: ANC government failing the poor
The Stats SA Quarterly Labour Force Survey released today shows that South Africa's official unemployment rate for the first quarter of 2013 has increased to 25,2%. When discouraged work-seekers are taken into account the ‘broad' unemployment rate has increased to a staggering 38%. This means that there are 1,2 million more South Africans unemployed today than there were on the day Jacob Zuma became president.
Fortunately the DA-run Western Cape bucked the negative trend by creating 8,000 jobs in the quarter seeing unemployment reduce further to an official 23,3% and a vastly better than national ‘broad' unemployment rate of 24,9% - the lowest amongst the provinces.
The report includes an increase of 73,000 in the size of the group of people who are unable to find work or have given up looking. This represents a tragedy, especially for the millions of unemployed youths who remain held back by lack of work opportunities.
The situation is simply unacceptable and a clear indication that the ANC is failing the poor and unemployed. President Zuma pays lip service to reducing unemployment in South Africa, but fails to follow through with his commitments.
We have seen this in the past three years' concessions to COSATU on the Youth Wage Subsidy, in the publication of the hopeless Youth Unemployment Accord, as well as the failure to provide clear steps for the immediate implementation of the NDP.
We call on President Zuma to stand up to COSATU and the SACP and ensure that pro-growth policies are implemented without any further delay. He must, in particular, tell his alliance partners that the NDP will be implemented - whether they like it or not.
Growing the economy and creating jobs remains the DA's top priority. Our Growth and Jobs Plan released last year details our plan to generate a dynamic economy that includes all South Africans and paves the way for a very different future: one of job creation, innovation, entrepreneurship, investment and growth.
It is high time that President Zuma and the ANC started putting South Africa's future ahead of their own political interests in the tri-partite alliance.
Statement issued by Tim Harris MP, DA Shadow Minister of Finance, May 6 2013
Click here to sign up to receive our free daily headline email newsletter
