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6.18 Analysis of Labour Market Trends
I t is estimated that Mozambique has a total work force of
approximately 9.6 million persons, of which an estimated 56%
corresponding to 520,000 are employed are in the formal sector. 95%
of the total labour force depends on the informal sector for its
subsistence, while an estimated, both public and private sectors. In
the formal sector, large enterprises dominate in terms of employment,
while small enterprises (1-9 employees) account for a great majority
of registered enterprises (IMF Country Report, 2002).
Almost one quarter of all jobs in the formal sector are found in
trade/commerce, while some 40% are engaged in government services
such as education, health and general public administration. Agriculture
dominates the informal sector. With the exception of large companies
in partnership with foreign investors, employment tends to be
stagnating in the private formal sector. However, some sub-sectors
show signs of growth, for example, construction, tourism, processing
of forestry products, and manufacturing of certain specialised items.
Overall, the Mozambican workforce is very poorly educated and has
limited skills. Half of the population has no education at all or only
basic literacy skills, while slightly above 40% has primary education.
Merely 7.5% has achieved secondary or tertiary education and only
0.5% of the population has a post secondary degree. Access to
education system is highly unequal with significantly less chances for
girls and people who dwell in the rural areas (IMF Country Report,
2002).
In term of demand characteristics, Table 22 indicates that the
Mozambican economy of GDP has undergone quite substantial
structural changes as a result of the rapid growth. Most remarkably is
the relative decline of the agriculture sector, which continues to provide
livelihood to two thirds of the population. Its share of GDP fell from
30 to less than 20% between the mid-nineties and 2001. The
manufacturing sector is not very diversified with food/beverages
accounting for 38% of the production, and aluminium production
(especially Mozal) for another 23%. Other important manufacturing
sub-sectors, such as textile/garment and footwear tend to be stagnating
(IMF Country Report, 2002).
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