Economic growth depends on unlocking women’s full potential

AS WOMEN’S Month continues to be commemorated in South Africa with colourful banners and applause, it is worth noting that for many women and girls, the struggle for equal opportunity is a daily lived experience.

- STAFF REPORTER

Efforts to empower women and girls in South Africa have not resulted in an impactful shift in addressing historical disparities.

The labour market continues to favour men and shows minimal signs of making real progress towards improving prospects for women. Stats SA’s latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey for the second quarter of 2025 reveals ongoing disparities in the labour market. A media statement by Stats SA notes that the unemployment rate for women in this period was 35,9% compared with 31,0% for men, a gap of 4,9 percentage points. “These differences reflect persistent gender imbalances in unemployment, labour force participation and the sectors in which men and women are employed.”

Education is also not closing the gap in unemployment for South African women, according to the Stats SA statement, and gender disparities in the labour market remain entrenched across all levels of educational attainment.

“In the second quarter of 2025, the official unemployment rate for graduates stood at 12,2%, marking a 0,5 percentage point increase from the previous quarter. A closer look reveals a persistent gender gap among the most educated. Female graduates faced an unemployment rate of 15%, compared to 8,9% for their male counterparts, a difference of 6,1 percentage points.”