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SA must scramble to reskill the workforce, align education with AI, automation and climate change

SA must scramble to reskill the workforce, align education with AI, automation and climate change
Lerato Mutsila and Takudzwa Pongweni
By Lerato Mutsila and Takudzwa Pongweni
4 Feb 2025
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As artificial intelligence, automation and climate change reshape global employment, South Africa’s job market is set for dramatic shifts by 2030. While millions of jobs will disappear, new opportunities in green energy, AI and healthcare will emerge. But is South Africa prepared? With skills gaps, education misalignment and rising unemployment, urgent action is needed to reskill workers and adapt higher education for the future.

Five years from now, South Africa’s existing job market is likely to look far different as artificial intelligence (AI), automation, economic shifts and climate change are set to reshape employment patterns and the skills required to hold down a job.

This is according to the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs 2025 report, which relied on data from more than 1,000 of the world’s leading employers in 55 countries, including South Africa.

The report found that by 2030, the global job market will face disruptions that will result in 92 million jobs becoming redundant but will also create 170 million new roles that will drive transformation. This will result in a net gain of 78 million jobs worldwide. South Africa can mitigate job displacement and tap into new employment opportunities if the government and private sector prioritise reskilling the workforce, transforming education and innovating policy.

Out with the old, in with the (somewhat) new

In addition to highlighting the jobs expected to experience rapid growth in demand, the Future of Jobs report also sheds light on the fastest-declining roles.

The report brings good news for frontline roles such as farmers, delivery drivers and construction workers, which are poised to experience the largest job growth by 2030. The demand for care roles is also set to increase as demographics change. Growing ageing populations and an increasing number of young people will necessitate more healthcare professionals to care for the elderly and educators to teach and prepare the youth for the world.

Climate-related roles are among the fastest-growing jobs, driven by the need for renewable energy engineers, environmental specialists and sustainability consultants. This bodes well for South Africa, with the country’s commitment to the Just Energy Transition creating opportunities for green jobs.

Jobs driven by technology, the green economy and demographic shifts:




Conversely, more traditional jobs like bank tellers, cashiers and data entry clerks have been projected as the fastest-declining jobs between 2025 and 2030.

Jobs most impacted by automation, AI and digital access:



Is South Africa ready for these job changes?


As technology continues to advance and digitalisation increasingly disrupts the job market, the public and private sectors in South Africa need to increase their efforts in upskilling both the youth and existing workers while ensuring that the education system aligns with how the job market is changing.

Having surveyed several businesses operating in South Africa, the study found that 60% of employers identified skills gaps as a key barrier to business transformation.

“With jobs such as AI and Machine Learning Specialists and Robotics Engineers on the rise, companies are planning to upskill employees and hire talent with new skills to meet evolving business needs,” the report found.

According to the Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa’s (IITPSA’s) ICT Skills Survey 2024, the Critical Skills List (CLS), which highlights which jobs are desperately needed in South Africa’s job market, shows a disconnect between the ICT skills available and the skills required in the country. This has led employers to recruit skilled workers from other countries.

With a high unemployment rate (32.1% in 2024), the situation could worsen if displaced workers are not reskilled and the youth are not equipped with the necessary skills to confidently enter the job market.

Speaking to Daily Maverick, Youth Capital’s Clotilde Angelucci said that skills development is something her organisation has been championing for years, particularly for young people.

“We have the infrastructure in place. We have the TVET system and structures like NSFAS, the Presidential Employment Stimulus and other public employment programmes, but we are not leveraging them correctly. These can be used and we’ve seen them being used, to bridge the digital divide. But they can also be used for training in new sectors, whether it’s climate resilience, conservation projects, or energy, and then using them to promote skills matching within the environment of small businesses where these programmes take place,” she added.

Angelucci noted that while we have the infrastructure in place, funding for public employment programmes is continually being cut, adding that one of the biggest programmes, the Basic Education Employment Initiative, did not run at all because funding from UIF was not unlocked.

“At this point, it’s about finding alignment between the vision and how we are going to implement this vision,” Angelucci said.

Adapting South African universities 


A vast body of research underscores the critical role that education plays not only in improving individual life outcomes but also in contributing to broader societal progress. Higher education, in particular, equips individuals with the skills and knowledge needed to innovate, contribute to the workforce and drive economic growth.

“Nothing could have prepared me for the pain and uncertainty I’m experiencing right now. Waking up each day to apply for jobs, only to receive multiple rejection emails or no responses at all, is incredibly disheartening. I don’t want to discourage those just starting their university journey, but there’s this notion that a degree is a guaranteed ticket to success. The reality, though, is that many of us end up qualified but still unemployed.”

These are the words of a 26-year-old who spoke to Daily Maverick on condition of anonymity. The student has a Bachelor of Education in Intermediate Phase Teaching from Nelson Mandela University and has been unemployed for two years.

South Africa’s youth bear the heaviest burden of the country’s alarmingly high unemployment rates. While higher education typically offers better economic prospects, graduate unemployment has increasingly become a cause for concern.

The combination of a fiercely competitive labour market, increasing university fees, the rise of alternative online learning options and the rapid evolution of job roles has shifted the perceived value of university degrees. In this new landscape, higher education alone may no longer be enough to secure a stable career.

In fact, the Future of Jobs 2025 report found that to expand their talent pool and improve skills matching, 34% of companies operating in South Africa plan to remove degree requirements, creating more accessible pathways to emerging jobs.

Studies show that South African universities continue to produce graduates who excel academically but are often underprepared in the soft skills that employers increasingly prioritise. These include adaptability, communication and emotional intelligence.

Additionally, other studies have shown that the skills acquired by graduates often do not match the needs of employers. This issue is further exacerbated by a lack of practical work experience, especially for graduates from programmes that focus heavily on theoretical knowledge.

In today’s competitive job market, many employers now require work experience even for entry-level positions, putting recent graduates at a considerable disadvantage.

If South Africa’s higher education sector continues along its current path, it risks deterioration. This was a key finding in Alternative Futures for Learning and Teaching in Higher Education in South Africa: Scenarios for 2036. Published in 2024, the report is part of a broader initiative by the Council on Higher Education, known as the REconceptualising Learning and Teaching (RELATE) Project.

A core aspect of this transformation is the integration of disruptive technologies into university curricula. The rise of automation, artificial intelligence and other technological advancements demands that students be prepared not only with traditional academic knowledge but also with the digital skills essential for the future workforce and adaptation to emerging technologies as they continue to redefine the job market. DM

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