The Neglected Sector That Can Make a Difference Towards 2030

Abstract

Unemployment is not only an economic concern but also a political, social and ethical challenge that National Development Plan (NDP)’ s vision 2030 aims to abate through its strategy for full employment. The NDP vision 2030 was so huge that it arguably undermined a major sector in employment creation in developing countries: the informal sector.1 The NDP is debatably unable to foster a viable alternative to joblessness that will decline the current dimension of unemployed labour force, the low-skilled labour. Joblessness in South Africa is highly linked to the level of skills or educational qualification at one’s disposal. This means that the bulge of unemployment, in general, is within those with less formal education qualifications. According to World Bank statistics, the bulk of unemployment in South Africa has been among the primary and secondary education leavers. This paper argues that the NDP 2030 undermined the impact of informal economic activities such as skills acquisition to uplift people out of poverty and unemployment.