South Africa needs more digital talent — and fast
Fresh research shows thousands of ICT jobs are sitting empty — and many of them could be filled by young people.
It’s no secret that South Africa is facing a digital skills crunch. But just how big is the gap between what companies need and the skills job seekers have? That’s what Collective X set out to uncover.
By analysing job ads from the country’s largest online jobs board and matching that data with stats from MICT Seta and Statistics South Africa’s Quarterly Labour Force Survey, the picture becomes clearer.
- There are over 30,000 different ICT jobs currently on offer, estimated to account for 26% of current job vacancy listings
- The number of ICT workers in South Africa in the last year amounts to close to 320,000
- Roughly 118,000 digital roles are currently unfilled – That’s a vacancy rate of about 37%
- Around 41,000 of those roles are junior – ideal for young talent
Let’s break that down.
There’s demand. So, where are the jobs?
You’d think high demand would mean high hiring, but interestingly, overall employment in the ICT sector has dropped in the past two years. This is partly because of a post-COVID correction in the market, and because companies (here and globally) have been tightening up operations.
That said, signs of a rebound are on the horizon with companies like Microsoft and Amazon Web Services investing in new data centres and infrastructure.
20 job types account for 78% of all digital roles
According to the data, just 20 types of digital jobs account for nearly 80% of all available posts. The top three?
- Software Developers (13%)
- Web Developers (10%)
- IT Support Technicians (8.4%)
While these roles represent the biggest entry points for junior candidates, they don’t necessarily represent the jobs that are most likely to hire young people. But they’re not the only ones hiring young people; roles like data analysts, data scientists, and Microsoft developers are increasingly showing a higher proportion of junior jobs available. This is likely because demand for these skills is growing fast, and employers can’t find enough mid- or senior-level talent, driving up hiring costs at this level, making the recruitment of junior candidates more attractive.
Where junior digital talent can really break in
The Collective X research flagged what we’re calling “zones of opportunity.” These are jobs where:
- There are a lot of vacancies, and
- There aren’t that many applications per post.
That’s the sweet spot. These are jobs where your chances of getting hired are better.
Software developers, web developers, and Microsoft developers all fall into this zone.
Roles like IT support technicians are also in demand, but the competition is tougher.
On the other hand, jobs like desktop support and data administrators might be oversaturated — fewer vacancies and a lot of applicants.
The takeaway?
South Africa doesn’t just need more digital talent, it needs the right kind, right now. The good news is that there are jobs out there, and not all of them demand 10 years of experience. By focusing on junior talent, we have a real opportunity to close skills gaps and tackle youth unemployment simultaneously.
But training alone won’t cut it. Young people need access to meaningful work experience, and that’s where work-integrated learning (WIL) and smarter hiring come in.
By investing in junior talent, we can close the skills gaps employers face and as the tech landscape evolves, we must equip young South Africans with the digital skills to thrive in the jobs of tomorrow.
