Peter Moyo
Zimbabwe’s unemployment crisis remains one of the most pressing issues facing the nation, with official figures painting a starkly different picture from the lived reality of millions.
While government statistics report single-digit unemployment, broader measures—including informal labour and underemployment—reveal a far graver situation, with experts estimating effective joblessness as high as 90% in some assessments.
According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), Zimbabwe’s official unemployment rate stood at 9.1% in 2023, down slightly from 9.3% in 2022. The World Bank’s modeled estimates for 2024 suggest an unemployment rate of 8.55%, with projections declining to 8.4% by 2026. However, these figures only account for those actively seeking work—excluding those who have given up or are engaged in informal, unstable jobs.
The Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (Zimstat) reported a broader unemployment rate of 21.8% in Q3 2024, still far below public sentiment.
The real story lies in Zimbabwe’s massive informal sector, where an estimated 80% of jobs exist—often low-paying, unstable, and without legal protections. Street vendors, subsistence farmers, and day labourers dominate this sector, yet they are not counted as unemployed under strict ILO definitions.
Subsistence farmers, previously classified as employed, are now being redefined as unemployed in newer surveys, which could push official rates higher. Youth unemployment stands at 14.3% (2023), down from 16.8% in 2022, but remains a critical issue, with nearly half of young Zimbabweans jobless.
Claims that 90% of Zimbabweans are unemployed stem from conflating informal work with joblessness. The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) and some media outlets have cited this figure, but it refers to the share of workers in precarious informal jobs—not outright unemployment.
The BBC Reality Check team found that while Zimbabwe’s strict unemployment rate is not 90%, the true measure of economic distress is the quality of employment, with most workers struggling in low-wage, insecure jobs.
Despite President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s 2017 promise of “jobs, jobs, jobs,” Afrobarometer surveys show 91% of Zimbabweans believe the government has failed on job creation. Recent policies—such as extending the retirement age and freezing public-sector hiring—have worsened youth prospects, fueling emigration.
Zimbabwe’s unemployment dilemma is not just about the numbers—it’s about economic survival. While official data suggests modest improvements, the reality for most Zimbabweans is a daily struggle in the informal economy, where wages are meagre and stability is rare.
For now, the debate continues: Is Zimbabwe’s real unemployment rate 9%, 21%, or something even higher? The answer depends on who you ask—and how you define “work.”
