CIF urges NSA to release employment data ahead of elections
The Construction Industries Federation of Namibia (CIF) has called on the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA) to release the 2023 census data on employment and unemployment.
The call follows the release of the official census report in October, which did not include any data on employment figures.
The CIF emphasised that with general elections approaching, accurate and up-to-date employment data is crucial for transparency, informed economic strategy and a clearer understanding of Namibia’s current unemployment landscape.
Vacuum
CIF CEO Bärbel Kirchner said the data would help construction industry stakeholders understand the extent of job losses since the last release of employment figures.
“Despite the national census conducted in 2023, we are still operating in a vacuum without current employment data. Our industry needs to understand the extent of job losses and identify where we can re-train and re-skill to meet the demands of recovery and support growth in emerging industries.”
According to Kirchner, Namibia’s construction sector has been in decline since 2016, following a government moratorium on construction projects.
The downturn was compounded by the Covid-19 pandemic, resulting in job losses and a sector still struggling to recover.
Data gaps
Despite the promise for new industries related to green hydrogen, oil and gas, promising new jobs as part of Namibia’s economic diversification agenda, without updated employment figures, questions remain about how these new roles align with existing workforce gaps, unemployment rates and demographic needs such as age groups, gender representation and regional job distribution.
“This lack of clarity makes it difficult to assess whether promised job creation targets truly address the country’s unemployment challenge or provide opportunities for those most impacted by the downturn in construction,” Kirchner said.
“These emerging industries are promising, but we need transparency to see where job creation is actually happening and how it stacks up against overall unemployment numbers and demographics. There’s a real need to understand how these initiatives benefit all Namibians, especially those most in need of stable work,” she added.
#NamibiaDecides2024
The call follows the release of the official census report in October, which did not include any data on employment figures.
The CIF emphasised that with general elections approaching, accurate and up-to-date employment data is crucial for transparency, informed economic strategy and a clearer understanding of Namibia’s current unemployment landscape.
Vacuum
CIF CEO Bärbel Kirchner said the data would help construction industry stakeholders understand the extent of job losses since the last release of employment figures.
“Despite the national census conducted in 2023, we are still operating in a vacuum without current employment data. Our industry needs to understand the extent of job losses and identify where we can re-train and re-skill to meet the demands of recovery and support growth in emerging industries.”
According to Kirchner, Namibia’s construction sector has been in decline since 2016, following a government moratorium on construction projects.
The downturn was compounded by the Covid-19 pandemic, resulting in job losses and a sector still struggling to recover.
Data gaps
Despite the promise for new industries related to green hydrogen, oil and gas, promising new jobs as part of Namibia’s economic diversification agenda, without updated employment figures, questions remain about how these new roles align with existing workforce gaps, unemployment rates and demographic needs such as age groups, gender representation and regional job distribution.
“This lack of clarity makes it difficult to assess whether promised job creation targets truly address the country’s unemployment challenge or provide opportunities for those most impacted by the downturn in construction,” Kirchner said.
“These emerging industries are promising, but we need transparency to see where job creation is actually happening and how it stacks up against overall unemployment numbers and demographics. There’s a real need to understand how these initiatives benefit all Namibians, especially those most in need of stable work,” she added.
#NamibiaDecides2024
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