Namibian youth face high unemployment despite rising post-secondary education

Nearly a quarter of young Namibians have attained post-secondary education, but only a small proportion are in full-time employment, highlighting a gap between education and labour market outcomes.

This is according to the latest Afrobarometer report, which shows that 23% of Namibians aged 18 to 35 have post-secondary education, while only 18% are employed full time. At the same time, 55% of young people are unemployed and actively looking for work.

The findings come as the Ministry of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sport, Arts and Culture released the 2025 provisional Namibia Senior Secondary Certificate Ordinary (NSSCO) and Advanced Subsidiary (NSSCAS) examination results earlier this week.

According to the ministry, 38 692 full-time candidates and 42 819 part-time candidates registered for the 2025 NSSCO examinations, reflecting continued demand for both first-time and second-chance education pathways.

Afrobarometer further found that 60% of Namibian youth have completed secondary education, while 3% have no formal schooling.

This indicates that access to education has expanded but not translated into improved employment outcomes.

In terms of employment status, the survey indicates that 9% of Namibian youth are employed part-time, while 18% are not employed and not looking for work, leaving more than half of young people outside stable employment.

The Afrobarometer report notes that across Africa, younger generations are more educated than older cohorts, but these gains have not resulted in better job prospects. Youth aged 18 to 25 face the greatest difficulty entering the labour market despite higher levels of schooling.

The report identifies lack of required work experience, inadequate training and mismatches between education and labour market needs as key barriers to youth employment among surveyed countries, including Namibia.

The findings also show that more than half of Namibian youth are neither in education nor employment.

While entrepreneurship is often promoted as an alternative pathway, Afrobarometer indicates that only 19% of Namibian young people would choose to start their own business, placing Namibia among countries with a low preference for self-employment.

Landless People’s Movement youth leader Duminga Ndala says the growing disconnect between higher education and employment outcomes highlights one of Namibia’s most pressing socioe-conomic challenges.

“Our current education system is not sufficiently aligned with the needs of the labour market, particularly in sectors where growth and innovation are urgently required. This has resulted in a significant skills mismatch between what students are taught and what employers demand,” she says.

She adds that it is imperative that institutions of higher learning are recalibrated to prioritise industry-relevant skills.

“This must include the regular reviewing and updating of curricula in close collaboration with employers, industry leaders and key economic stakeholders to ensure graduates are equipped with practical, market-ready competencies. This disconnect reflects deeper structural weaknesses within our economy. Namibia is not creating enough quality jobs in new and diversified sectors capable of absorbing the growing number of graduates and unemployed youth,” Ndala notes.

She says addressing this requires targeted public and private investment in sectors with high employment potential, particularly those that can drive innovation, value addition and inclusive economic growth.

Khomas youth activist Renciah Kooper says the Afrobarometer findings confirm what many young Namibians are already experiencing every day.

“Education is no longer a guaranteed pathway to employment. While more young people are attaining post-secondary qualifications, the labour market is not growing fast enough to absorb them, and the skills being produced often do not match the needs of the economy.

“This growing disconnect reflects deeper structural problems: a slow-growing economy, limited industrialisation and an education system that remains too theoretical and insufficiently aligned with practical, entrepreneurial and technical skills,” she says.

Kooper adds that: “As a result, we are producing qualified young people who are educated, hopeful and motivated, but systematically excluded from decent work.

“Youth unemployment is not a failure of young people; it is a failure of systems.”

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