Free Tertiary Education, Jobless Graduates and Vision 2023

President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah’s announcement that tertiary and vocational education will be free from this year is a breakthrough for students and families who struggle with registration fees and acquiring student loans. 

It also signals that the government wants to empower the youth and help uplift Namibians.

But the move comes with many questions such as: “What about the thousands of graduates who have qualifications but no jobs? What about unemployed citizens who are not students?”

And, interestingly, whether Vision 2030, which is rapidly approaching, is achievable given these lingering questions. 

Will subsidised education realistically contribute to our national goals, especially given that unemployment keeps rising?
It is crucial to dive deeper into the potential impact on Namibia’s overall socio-economic landscape.

TURNING POINT

Free tertiary and vocational education mark a turning point.

For decades access to higher education has been unequal, largely dependent on household income.
This year that barrier will be lifted.

The president’s decision acknowledges that education is not a privilege but a national investment, an attempt to give opportunities to everyone, regardless of socio-economic background.

However, as transformative as this policy is “education alone does not equal employment”.

I hear on a daily basis of young graduates who hope to secure jobs.

Many end up in the informal sector, selling goods on the street, and doing odd jobs. Unfortunately, some turn to crime.

Numerous factors fuel this crisis such as a stagnant economy still recovering from past shocks; slow job creation in the private sector; insufficient support for youth entrepreneurship; or even mismatched skills between what students study and what the country needs. 

Free education will give future students hope, but unemployed graduates remain sidelined as they struggle to find direction in the prevailing situation.

CHALLENGES

Namibia’s unemployment rate, especially youth unemployment, is one of Namibia’s biggest challenges.
It threatens both economic growth and social stability.

A country cannot realise its development dreams when young people are frustrated, indolent or lose hope in prevailing systems.

Our late founding president, Sam Nujoma, introduced ‘Vision 2030’, a national blueprint that aims to make Namibia a developed state by the year 2030. 

With only four years left, many Namibians are questioning whether these goals remain realistic, especially with increasing unemployment and economic growth proving largely inconsistent and erratic.

So, does making education free help Namibia move closer to Vision 2030? Yes, but only to a limited extent.

Without an employment pathway and economic expansion, free education alone will not achieve president Nujoma’s envisioned dream.

POSSIBILITIES

To ensure that free education contributes to Vision 2030, the government and private sector must work together to align education with industry’s needs.

Universities and vocational centres must offer programmes that match emerging markets such as green hydrogen renewable energy and artificial intelligence.

Further, Namibia must expand industrialisation to add value to Namibia’s raw materials.

This can potentially create thousands of jobs.
The president’s announcement of free tertiary and vocational education in 2026 is historic and potentially transformative.

It opens doors and gives young Namibians a fairer chance at success.

However, education without the possibility of employment is an “unfinished promise”.

For Vision 2030 to become more than just a dream, Namibia must pair free education with aggressive job creation strategies, and industrial growth as well as youth empowerment.

Only then can we secure a vigorous future for the next generation.

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