The Paradox of Educated Youth Unemployment in Zimbabwe: A case of scarcity in the midst of plenty: a review.

Abstract

The review focuses on causes of unemployment among educated youths in the world’s richest country in terms of untapped natural resources per person – Zimbabwe; which according to the World Fact book (2013) had the highest unemployment rate in the world. The review sought to find answers to the pertinent question: What caused Zimbabwe’s high unemployment situation among educated youths?. The review established that hyperinflation experienced during the period 2000-2008, low industry capacity utilization, inappropriate theory intensive curricula in schools, colleges and universities,policy inconsistencies and economic stagnation are some of the major root causes of the high unemployment situation among educated youths in Zimbabwe.Hyperinflation is one of the biggest drivers of unemployment. It may cause industries to close down while workers may walk out of jobs after failing to see the value of salaried jobs.Controlling or reversing hyperinflation may not lead to controlling the high unemployment caused by it, thus the best way to avoid hyperinflation driven unemployment is never to allow hyperinflation to affect an economy in the first place because its repercussions may be long term and difficult to reverse.