South Africa’s black women remained the most vulnerable to unemployment in the country at a rising rate of half a percentage point to 27.6% in the first quarter of 2019, Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) said in Pretoria on Tuesday.
Stats SA’s statistician general Risenga Maluleke, writing in the agency’s Quarterly Labour Force Survey, said African women’s unemployment rate in the country in the first quarter of 2019 stood at 27.6%, rising from 27.1% recorded in the last quarter of 2018.
In terms of the breakdown by population and sex, African black women were the most affected, with their unemployment standing at 31.1%, while white women were the least affected at 6.6%, the official said.
Maluleke added: “White and Indian/Asians were less affected by unemployment compared to African blacks and coloureds (people of mixed blood).
The unemployment rate for women of Asian/Indian descent was at 11.4%.
Unemployment rate for coloured women was 22.2%, the statistician said.
NM/jn/APA