Botswana's jobless rate 'worse than Zimbabwe's'By MTOKOZISI DUBE in Gaborone | Wednesday, May 2  2012 at  14:51

A report has revealed that diamond-rich Botswana’s unemployment rate is worse than Zimbabwe's.

According to the Gallup survey, global unemployment remained stable at eight per cent between 2010 and 2011 after findings in 148 countries.

Botswana, South Africa and Swaziland—“all of which have among the highest unemployment rates in the world” top the unemployment rates in sub-Saharan Africa region.

And while Zimbabwe and South Africa have between 30 and 39 per cent of its able-bodied citizens employed full time, Botswana only has between 20 and 29 per cent.

"The report could be accurate because it’s very difficult to get a job in this country. I’ve been here for four years and I am yet to get formal employment,” said Nigel Gumbo, a Gaborone-based Zimbabwean.

More than 35 per cent of Batswana, South Africans and Zimbabweans are underemployed, the report states.

Gallup collects employment data using identical questions worldwide to classify respondents’ employment status.

Unemployment was highest in the Middle East and North Africa (22 per cent) and sub-Saharan Africa (17 per cent) last year and lowest in Asia (5 per cent).

Sub-Sahara Africa has one of the highest unemployment and underemployment rates and the lowest good job rates in the world.