Across continents, the path from education into work is narrowing. Twenty years ago, a degree or diploma was a reasonable entry ticket: vacancies outnumbered qualified applicants in many industries, and “junior” roles were seen as investments in future talent.

In 2025, that equation has flipped. From Lagos to London, Sydney to Johannesburg, employers are posting fewer entry-level jobs while competition for each role intensifies. And while the drivers vary by region, the result is similar: young people are facing record underemployment and delayed career starts.

The Converging Pressures

  1. AI reshaping entry-level work globally The New York Times recently pointed out how, since the early 2010s, world leaders and tech executives pushed coding as the ultimate career safeguard—promising high pay and security for computer science graduates. This led to a boom in computer science enrolments worldwide. But the reality in 2025 is stark: companies like Amazon and Microsoft are laying off staff, embracing AI, and hiring fewer juniors. What was once a “golden ticket” is now another crowded queue.

Across Africa, the same pattern is emerging. Financial services, retail, and logistics—industries that once soaked up young analysts, clerks, and developers—are now automating much of the work that built early-career experience. AI’s ability to summarise reports, code, process transactions, and even engage customers means the traditional apprenticeship-by-doing is eroding.

  1. Economic headwinds and hiring freezes In developed markets, uncertainty over trade and tariffs has put expansion plans on hold. In emerging economies, the headwinds are inflation, volatile currencies, and rising debt service costs. Across Africa, government spending slowdowns and tighter private-sector budgets have meant fewer graduate intakes.

  2. The remote-work squeeze The pandemic-era boom in remote hiring is receding. Indeed’s data shows remote job postings fell from 10.4% of all U.S. roles in 2022 to 7.8% in late 2024; Robert Half’s global figure for fully remote is 13%. African markets feel this more acutely: the smaller pool of international remote jobs that African talent can compete for is now even more competitive.

  3. The “ghost job” phenomenon Fake or already-filled vacancies aren’t just a Western annoyance. University of Michigan research estimated 1.7 million ghost jobs on LinkedIn, and recruiters across South Africa and Nigeria report similar frustrations. These listings distort the market, waste jobseekers’ time, and make conditions appear better than they are.

Gen Z’s Adaptations

The response among younger workers is diverse and often resourceful:

  • AI literacy as a survival skill The World Economic Forum forecasts that two-thirds of the global workforce will need retraining by 2030. In markets where formal training is scarce, self-directed AI skill acquisition—via free tools, community hubs, and peer networks—is becoming the differentiator.
  • Entrepreneurship out of necessity and opportunity The GEM 2023/24 report found 24% of 18–24-year-olds in the U.S. are entrepreneurs, with similar patterns in parts of Africa where formal jobs are scarce. In Kenya, South Africa, and Nigeria, small-scale digital businesses—e-commerce stores, content creation, freelance services—are becoming first jobs.
  • A pragmatic shift to skilled trades Forbes reports 37% of Gen Z college graduates in the U.S. are pursuing blue-collar or skilled-trade roles for job security and AI resilience. The same logic applies in Africa, where trades in construction, energy, and transport remain less exposed to automation. These are also the sectors where infrastructure development will drive demand over the next decade.

Why This Matters for African Employers

The disappearing entry-level rung is more than a youth unemployment story—it’s a talent pipeline risk. When juniors aren’t hired, the mid-level talent pool of the future shrinks. In Africa, where the working-age population is growing faster than anywhere else, failing to integrate young workers risks entrenching inequality and eroding competitiveness.

Key considerations for employers:

  • If entry-level tasks are automated, create structured pathways for juniors to work alongside AI rather than be excluded by it.
  • Invest in internships, apprenticeships, and graduate programmes that deliberately integrate AI tools, so new hires build relevant skills from day one.
  • Recognise that the global market for remote work is contracting; regional talent strategies need to be more intentional.

The Imbila Perspective

This is not the “end of jobs” narrative—it’s the end of assuming the first job will look like it did for the last generation. For Africa, the challenge is double-edged: we must equip a fast-growing youth population with the tools to thrive in an AI-augmented economy while avoiding a lost generation of graduates sidelined before they start.

At Imbila, we see the winners as those who:

  1. Embed AI into their professional identity rather than treating it as an optional skill.
  2. Build hybrid careers that cross sectors, blending digital skills with domain knowledge.
  3. Push for employer innovation—demanding entry points that are AI-relevant and future-facing.

The first rung of the ladder may be shifting, but the climb is still possible. The difference is that the ladder is now global, digital, and competitive in ways our policy, education, and corporate systems haven’t fully caught up to.