Unemployment fuels social unrest

The unemployment rate in South Africa increased further in the last quarter of 2021 to reach a new record at 35.3%, the Government Statistics Agency announced on Tuesday March 29. This is the absolute record for fourteen years. The official rate had reached 34.9% in the previous quarter. The continent’s leading industrial power now has 7.9 million unemployed out of a population of nearly 60 million. Young people are particularly affected, more than 66% of 15-24 year olds being affected.

In this situation, foreign nationals have become the scapegoats. The government has been on all fronts in recent months, in addition to having to manage the demonstrations of anger against foreign workers, it must also face its political opposition. South Africa is occasionally plagued by xenophobic outbreaks. Sixty-two people were killed in riots in 2008. Violent clashes erupted in 2015, 2016 and again in 2019.

South Africa has 3.95 million foreigners, according to official statistics, out of a population of nearly 60 million. The continent’s leading industrial power struggles with more than 35% unemployment but attracts many African migrants. “Even if they expelled all the immigrants, that would not change the level of crime or that of unemployment,” commented to AFP Jay Naidoo, first secretary general of the main trade union center (Cosatu).