By Juno Angula
Namibia makes graduates faster than its economy can hire them. This is not because young people lack drive or brains. The system is not built to deliver jobs. Talented young people sit at home while employers struggle to fill key roles.
Government must do more than place graduates in short internships. It must rebuild how schools, business and the state work together. Universities have a big part to play. Welwitchia University (WU) is already acting.
In 2025, Namibia’s colleges and universities produced 23,048 graduates. Yet few find work each year.
Graduate employment fell from 83% in 2017 to 65% in 2024. Graduates wait 15 months on average for their first job. One in three waits over two years. 47% of agriculture graduates have no job. Certificate and diploma holders face 45% unemployment, higher than degree holders. Youth unemployment is about 43%. The overall rate is expected to stay between 35% and 36%.
This is also a fit problem. Simonis Storm warns of a growing “misalignment between the type of qualifications produced and the structure of labour demand.” Schools keep producing business, public administration and social science graduates. Meanwhile, energy, construction, logistics, manufacturing and mining lack technicians, artisans, mid-level engineers and plant operators. The skills pyramid is upside down.
The National Work Integrated Learning (WIL) Policy 2025–2030 is a good step. It aims to place 5,000 graduates in internships each year and keep 80%. But by June 2025, only 734 placements had been made. That is a small slice of the target. Many internships are unpaid or poorly paid. That shuts out graduates who cannot work for free.
Internships alone cannot fix the pipeline. Prime Minister, Dr. Elijah Ngurare, noted that employers ask fresh graduates for five years of experience. We are asking young people to cross a canyon with a stepladder.
In Kenya, the PropelA programme, run by Swisscontact with the National Industrial Training Authority, places apprentices at companies 70% of the time and in class 30%. More than 80% get jobs afterwards, and it has helped over 1,260 graduates find work. Companies earn an average 30% return and recover their cost within three years. A levy paid by private firms funds it, so it does not rely only on government.
In South Africa, BluLever Education designs trades programmes with employers, mixing campus learning with paid placements. Of those who pass their trade test, 88% are employed or still studying.
These are not miracles. They are design choices that treat skills as an investment, not charity.
Many degrees are out of date. NUST’s Professor Frednard Gideon says, “skills get outdated more rapidly than ever.” By the time students graduate, he says, “acquired skills or competencies are no longer needed in industry.” Courses lean on theory and lack practical, technical and business skills.
The answer is not to drop degrees. Add short, stackable credentials that employers trust. Universities should also run Labour Market Intelligence Units to track skills in demand and update courses every two to three years. Accreditation should depend on proof that industry helped design the course and that graduates find work.
The Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA) Memorandum of Understanding agreement covers joint research, resource sharing, staff training and work-integrated learning for students. Reliable data shows which skills are in demand and which graduates find work. WU and the NSA can build that evidence together. Students gain real experience on real national projects. The deal also covers who owns new ideas and how new technology moves from campus into use.
Recommendations: A Graduate Absorption Compact
Turn WIL into partnership. Every government-funded programme needs a named industry partner who shares in course design, mentoring and guaranteed interviews. The 5,000 target is a start. What counts is how many graduates are kept in paid jobs, not how many are placed.
Create an Apprenticeship Levy with teeth. Kenya shows a levy-funded system can work at scale without leaning on the treasury. Reform the vocational training levy so firms hosting structured apprenticeships get tax deductions of up to 50% of apprentice wages, as in Kenya.
Retire programmes that no longer fit. The NCHE and the Ministry should audit relevance every three years. Phase out programmes with low job rates and no industry link. This is not about closing universities. It is about stopping the production of graduates for jobs that do not exist.
Start dual apprenticeship pilots now. Do not wait for a perfect national framework. Fund three to five in energy, logistics, agri-processing and construction, using PropelA and BluLever as templates.
Make paid workplace learning a graduation requirement. It should earn credit and be judged by industry. Employers who host students should get recognition and rewards. Challenge employers who demand five years of experience to help create it.
The crisis is not too many graduates. It is too few pathways. Young Namibians did their part. They studied, kept going and earned their qualifications. Now government, universities and industry must build bridges that lead somewhere.
Juno Angula, Marketing and Brand Officer, Welwitchia University
