13 Dec 2023

 The Labour Market Information System (LMIS) is expected to provide regular, accurate and time series data on education, training and employment.

This was said by Human Resource Development Council (HRDC) director - Department of Statistics, Research, Development and Innovation, Dr Tlamelo Sekambo on Tuesday at a workshop aimed at appreciating and validating phase one of the LMIS as well as explain its functions and milestones achieved.

Dr Sekambo said the system would also improve accessibility and flow of labour market data and information and reduce information asymmetry for users for improved policy formulation and planning for the supply of skills, maximising business potential and support employer-jobseeker matching.

Again, he said, the system would monitor key labour market indicators such as employment and unemployment rates, job vacancies, wage levels as well as workforce demographics.

“This information helps track changes in the labour market over time and identify trends which were useful for policy intervention,” she said.

She added that the LMIS metadata handbook provided primary data on indicators including job tenure, rate of part-time workers, rate of paid annual leave and employment by weekly hours worked, among others.

Moreover, she said, the value proposition to be derived from the system included partnership in monitoring of public service labour market needs and development of public sector human resource development strategies.

She said other derivatives included coordination of the affirmative action programme in government for the employment of the vulnerable groups and collection of relevant data for the indicators contained in the LMIS Metadata Handbook and development of other public service labour indicators to support the system.

Dr Sekambo said the current jobseeker database was the integration of the Directorate Of Public Service Management (DPSM) unemployed graduate database, job seeker database and the Ministry of Education and Skills Development graduate teacher database.

She said they also relied on engaging strategic stakeholders such as the Construction Industry Trust Fund (CITF), Botswana Institute of Chartered Accountants (BICA), Engineers Registration Board (ERB), Architects Registration Council (ARC), Ministry of Health, Ministry of Youth, Gender, Sport and Culture and Botswana Investment and Trade Centre (BITC) for possible system linkages. ENDS