Mohloai Mpesi
PRIME Minister Sam Matekane has announced a series of bold initiatives aimed at reducing unemployment in Lesotho, with a particular focus on creating opportunities for young people.
Among the measures, the government plans to lower taxes and reduce the retirement age in public service to 50 years.
This move, according to Mr Matekane, is designed to open up positions in the public sector for younger job seekers.
Speaking about the plan during a media briefing this week, Mr Matekane said, by encouraging civil servants aged 50 and above to take early retirement, the government could create more space for young people to enter the workforce.
“The government will also explore ways to reduce taxes, making it easier for businesses to hire more youths,” Mr Matekane said.
In addition, the Prime Minister has instructed ministries that are able to do so, to allocate two percent of their annual budgets to the Youth Development Fund.
“This contribution will help us combat unemployment by directly supporting youth initiatives,” Mr Matekane said.
The Prime Minister cited data from the Bureau of Statistics and the Lesotho Labour Force Survey 2024, noting that 50 percent of the population is currently unemployed, with youths making up less than half of this number.
In February this year during her 2025-2025 budget speech in parliament, Minister of Finance and Development Planning, Dr Retšelisitsoe Matlanyane, said that 38.9 percent of youth in Lesotho were unemployed, with young women bearing the brunt at 41 percent.
Mr Matekane pointed to international factors, including U.S. executive orders and the withdrawal of Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) aid, as having worsened the unemployment situation.
To address this, the government will employ 6,000 young people, including 3,000 in rural road construction.
An additional 8,350 will be hired quarterly for waste management
There are also plans to hire 1,220 people for a climate resilience tree-planting program.
In the energy sector, around 3,066 jobs will be created, with 2,700 Basotho employed for electricity connectivity projects. Another 366 positions will be filled for fuel statistics collection and expanding household electricity access.
Agriculture will also benefit, as the government supports the purchase of 200 tractors and related equipment, providing jobs for at least 200 Basotho.
There will be 3,160 long-term positions for skilled workers and 10,800 temporary jobs across sectors.
Further initiatives include hiring 450 youths for Wool and Mohair promotion and supporting 80 young farmers through the Smallholder Agricultural Development Project (SADP II).
The Sebabatso program, which has already assisted 1,077 young people, will continue to receive government backing.
The National Volunteer Corps will take on 2,500 volunteers who will receive incentives.
The Pathways to Sustainable Livelihoods Project (PSLP) is helping Basotho start businesses, with 2,500 beneficiaries so far—40 percent of whom are youth.
Currently, Mr Matekane said, 950 young people are being supported to start their own businesses, and 663 have been employed through the school feeding scheme.
With these comprehensive measures, Mr Matekane said the government aimed to “significantly reduce unemployment and provide more opportunities for Lesotho’s youth”.
The government projects that its efforts will create approximately 60,000 jobs across various sectors, with positions becoming available as early as July.
Jobs will be distributed throughout Lesotho’s ten districts.
Mr Matekane emphasized his personal commitment to ensuring the success of his plans, stating he “will spend time each week visiting projects to monitor progress”.
