WASHINGTON: Unemployment statistics in Rwanda previously provided by the statistics body have been inaccurate, KTPress reports. The National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR) on Tuesday admitted before Parliament that they were using an inaccurate rating system. In a recent NISR pilot survey, unemployment levels are higher among educated Rwandans contrary to Integrated Household Living Conditions Survey (EICV4) released in 2015. Yussuf Murangwa NISR’s Director General told a consultative meeting on labour promotion that previous measures stated that a person working one hour a week is considered employed. However, using the 2013 International Labour Organisation (ILO) measurements, officials said new statistics indicate that uneducated Rwandans who spend more than three hours in farms or have a paid job are now considered employed. The new measures adopted by Rwanda now show that general unemployment rate is 13.2%, compared to 2.5% that was announced in EICV 4. With the new figures, many Rwandans fall under unemployment rate by level of education attainment category.
Unemployment among Rwandans who completed upper secondary is the highest at 23%, followed by the unemployment among graduates of tertiary education with 18%. On another side, the rate of unemployment among uneducated is 10% – the lowest. Moreover, in Rwanda 16% of people that depend on agriculture are unemployed. Murangwa said this pilot study from which conclusive results will be released in August is not a cause for alarm. “It doesn’t mean unemployment increased, it essentially means that new measure captures situation better and that unemployment is high. However, we will be publishing regular and detailed employment statistics released at the same time with the Growth Domestic Product results,” Murangwa said. However, he said many employed Rwandans work for very few hours and their productivity is minimal compared to expectations of the jobs. For example an average civil servant works for five hours a day, instead of at least nine hours, which makes an average of 38 hours a week. “This is a set back in the country’s productivity and it is evident among 50% of the labor force,” Murangwa said. The EIVC4 showed that over 140,000 jobs were created annually since 2011 to meet the 200,000 target every year by the year 2018. Lawmakers said there is a mismatch between unemployment and the country’s business performance.
