Belize’s latest labor force survey, conducted in April 2013, has revealed that the jobless rate has fallen by about 2 percentage points when compared with last April’s survey – from 14.4% to 12.1%, according to a release by the Statistical Institute of Belize (SIB).

“This represents a fall in the number of persons without a job from about 21,370 to 17,920 persons,” said the report.

Between 2002 and 2013, the jobless rate has spanned 9% to 14.4%, with the April 2013 rate still being on the higher end of the spectrum.

Last year’s rate was the highest record in 14 years, and whereas the jobless rate has improved, one major trend continues to hold true: The unemployment rates for youth and women continue to be disproportionately high.

The unemployment rate for women is more than triple that of their male counterparts; and young people under 24 comprised nearly half (46%) of those unemployed.

All districts except the Belize and Stann Creek Districts experienced a fall in the unemployment rate, with Cayo showing the greatest decline from 18.2% last April to 12.8% this April. The lowest unemployment rate for April 2013 was reported for Toledo at 8%.

“The unemployment rate in Toledo and Cayo, in particular, fell by more than five percentage points, reflecting sizeable employment gains in the agriculture sector,” said the SIB report.

According to the SIB, the fall in the national unemployment rate occurred because there is now “a smaller percentage of working-age persons working or available for work; and a significant increase in the number of jobs available.”

It added that the service sector was the largest contributor to the increase in jobs in the other districts.

As shown in Figure 2, the urban and rural unemployment rates remained within a percentage point of each other.

The SIB said that a detailed report on the results of the April 2013 Labour Force Survey will be released in the next two months.