Martin Endjala
The Construction Industries Federation of Namibia (CIF) has called on the government to release the Labour Force Survey from the 2023 Population and Housing Census.
The industry cited the lack of data, which is hampering effective planning and recovery for the struggling construction sector.
Despite conducting a national census in 2023, Bärbel Kirchner, the chief executive officer of CIF, said the sector continues to function without any current employment data.
“Our industry needs to understand the extent of job losses and identify where we can retrain and reskill to meet the demands of recovery and support growth in emerging industries,” she said.
The Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA), when it released the Population and Housing Census report on 30 October, indicated that it will release the Labour Force data in January 2025.
Kirchner said in the last few years, the government has pushed for ambitious new projects in green hydrogen, oil, and gas, promising new jobs as part of Namibia’s economic diversification agenda.
She highlighted the absence of current data as a significant obstacle to assessing whether the promised job creation aligns with unemployment rates and workforce gaps.
According to Kirchner, the COVID-19 pandemic and a government project moratorium have caused the construction sector to decline since 2016, which has resulted in widespread job losses.
“The CIF calls on the Namibian government to release the 2023 census employment and unemployment data urgently. With the last available figures from 2018, critical sectors, including construction, remain in the dark regarding the state of the workforce, hampering effective planning and recovery efforts,” she urged.
Kirchner stressed that with Namibia’s general elections approaching, transparent and accurate employment data is crucial for developing informed economic strategies and addressing unemployment challenges.
The CIF also reiterated the need for a Construction Council to regulate the industry, advocate for workforce development, and establish industry standards.
Such a council would provide the regulatory support necessary to prepare the sector for sustainable growth and economic resilience.
In July, the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA) said it will embark upon the 2025/2026 Namibia Household Income & Expenditure Survey (NHIES).
This is a twelve-month exercise to allow for seasonal variations, which will start with a pilot survey that will run from 30 September until 18 October 2024.
The main fieldwork for the NHIES will run from 17 March 2025 until 17 March 2026.
The NHIES 2025/2026 is the primary source of information on income and expenditure in Namibia.
