An alarming gap in human capital development has been highlighted, with children born in Namibia projected to achieve only 45% of their productive potential as adults, compared to 88% in Singapore, a disparity linked to weaknesses in the country's education system.
This was highlighted by Sylvester Mbangu, Deputy Executive Director for Macroeconomic Planning at the National Planning Commission, at the National Skills and Employment Dialogue in Windhoek.
Experts warn that the misalignment between Namibia's education system and labour market needs could be undermining the country's productivity, with children born in Namibia expected to reach only 45% of their productive potential by age 18.
They say the education system must be better integrated to ensure that the skills developed address social challenges while meeting the actual demands of different economic sectors.
"Maybe I can explain a little bit here. If a child is born today and after 18 years, that child in Namibia will be only 45% of that. This we can compare with Singapore, which leads the world with a human capital in a score of 0.8%. Similarly, the child who is born in Singapore today, when that child is 18 years old, will be 88% for that. So you can see the difference. What brings that difference is the educational system," explained Mbangu.
Experts also highlighted the mismatch between education and labour market needs, noting that while institutions produce graduates in fields such as office administration, sectors like energy urgently need more Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) -skilled workers.
They further questioned the readiness of TVET graduates, with only 26.2% able to apply skills acquired during training, while another 26.2% are familiar with equipment and can work with limited supervision.
Dr. Muine Samahiya, an Associate Member of the Economic Association of Namibia (EAN), said, "Graduates are firmly expected to be ready for the labour market immediately. But we need the industry as well to collaborate to impact the practical skills of the graduates. So what are the employers asking TVET institutions to change? Enforce more mandatory attachment times in all trades. Add higher qualification levels. Improve practical components, equivalents of skills."
The Employers' Federation Secretary General, Helen Ochs, has urged a complete review of academic programmes to stop producing graduates with irrelevant qualifications.
"By the time you get to me as an employer, I just want to polish and want to make sure that you fit in the workplace area you have started in for the field you have studied, whether it's a sectorial area or TVET."
The dialogue, hosted by the Economic Association of Namibia in partnership with the Hanns Seidel Foundation and Bank Windhoek, brought stakeholders to explore solutions to skills mismatches, unemployment and workforce development.