With the non-energy sector leading the country to economic recovery, the Central Bank’s annual economic report, released on Tuesday, predicted more jobs coming in the sector.
“The non-energy sector is expected to remain buoyant,” the report said. “This may have further positive implications for labour market conditions, including an increase in the labour force participation rate as more people are encouraged to enter the labour market.”
The cautiously optimistic outlook posed by Central Bank came a day before Labour Day, which commemorates the anniversary of the Uriah Butler oilfield riots in 1937.
Overall, the economy showed significant growth, with headline inflation down from 5.8 per cent in 2022 to 4.6 per cent in 2023. The overall domestic economy grew by 2.5 per cent.
Central Bank recorded gross official reserves amounting to US$6.3 billion with 7.8 months of import cover.
This was echoed in the International Monetary Fund (IMF’s) country report.
The IMF’s report said real GDP rebounded in 2022, and it expected further growth in 2023 while headline inflation decreased.
More jobs, higher participation in 2023
The report, which highlighted labour statistics for the past five years (2018-2023) from the Central Statistical Office (CSO), predicts a rebound in employment after employment fell during covid19.
For 2023, Central Bank recorded 578,800 registered jobs. This was out of a total labour force of 602,800 for the year.
This marked an increase over 2022, which, out of a total labour force of 594,600, had 565,300 jobs recorded.
Labour participation in 2023 increased for men, with the Central Bank recording a 64.6 per cent labour participation rate, compared to a 47.1 participation rate among women.
In 2022, the participation rate for men was lower, at 62.7 per cent. But the rate was incrementally higher in 2022, at 47.6 per cent.
The unemployment rate also showed a disparity between genders, with unemployment among males recorded at 3.5 per cent and unemployment among females recorded at 4.6 per cent.
In 2018, employment was at a five-year high, at 609,100 jobs out of a total workforce of 633,900 for that year. The unemployment rate for that year was recorded at 3.9 per cent, with 3.2 per cent of the total labour force who were unemployed being male and 4.9 per cent of the total workforce who were unemployed being female.
In 2021, out of a labour force of 592,200, only 560,400 people had jobs. The unemployment rate for that year was 5.4 per cent overall, with 4.8 per cent being male and 6.1 per cent being female.
The report added that retrenchment notices reported to the Ministry of Labour for the period January-December 2023 indicated that 465 people were retrenched, compared to 980 people in 2022. This showed a 515-person reduction in retrenchments year-on-year.
Retrenchments were reported mainly in the transport, communication and storage sectors, distribution, finance, insurance, real estate, petroleum and other mining and personal service sectors.
While the number of
