Australia’s Tanking Productivity: The Hidden Power of African Immigrants and How SyncSkills Is Unleashing It.
- Noah Oloja
- Jun 29
- 3 min read
By Noah Oloja, Tech Career Coach | June 2025
Australia is at an economic crossroads.
Productivity — the very lifeblood of a thriving economy — is stagnating. According to Treasury reports, we are facing the slowest productivity growth since the 1960s. Meanwhile, countless skilled immigrants, particularly from Africa, are underemployed, working far below their capabilities in low-skilled sectors.
And yet, amid this crisis, one organisation is quietly reshaping the narrative — SyncSkills, a talent transformation hub that is training, coaching, and mentoring immigrants to step into high-value tech roles. This isn’t just a social good story. It’s an economic strategy Australia cannot afford to ignore.
What Is Productivity, and Why It Matters
At its core, productivity measures how efficiently goods and services are produced — specifically, the output generated per hour worked. In a national context, rising productivity means more value is created without increasing inputs. It’s how nations grow wealthier.
But when productivity stalls — as it has in Australia — so does economic growth. Businesses struggle to expand. Wages stagnate. Living standards plateau. And governments collect less revenue, shrinking budgets for healthcare, education, and infrastructure.
Why Australia’s Productivity Is Declining
One hidden contributor? Skill misalignment.
Despite record immigration, many highly educated and experienced African immigrants are stuck in low-wage, low-skill jobs — from aged care to warehouse shifts — simply because they lack local certification, support, or belief in transferable skills.
This is not an issue of capacity — it’s a failure of recognition and enablement. Australia is importing talent, then wasting it.
We are, in effect, suppressing the very labour force we need to drive a high-skilled economy.
SyncSkills: Transforming Potential Into Productivity
Enter SyncSkills (https://www.syncskills.com.au/), an education and workforce consulting firm that’s proving what's possible when we invest in people — not just policies.
Founded by African-Australian entrepreneurs with firsthand experience of immigrant underemployment, SyncSkills runs a end-to-end bootcamp that equips immigrants with the practical skills, industry certification, mentorship, and job-ready support needed to land high-paying roles in tech — Business Analysis, Project Management, and Agile delivery.
But SyncSkills is doing more than filling jobs — it’s unlocking productivity.
SyncSkills alumni are now working at major banks, tech firms, and government agencies.
These roles pay 2-3x more than typical immigrant jobs, boosting household income and tax contributions.
Alumni report higher job satisfaction and retention, lowering turnover costs for employers.
In short, SyncSkills is converting Australia’s underutilised talent pool into an engine of innovation, digital transformation, and economic resilience.
The Systemic Problem: Skills Misalignment
According to Jobs and Skills Australia, nearly 1 in 4 immigrants with tertiary degrees are working in jobs that require no formal qualification.
This mismatch costs the economy billions in lost output annually — and slows our transition toward a future-proof, high-skilled workforce.
The digital economy, cybersecurity, AI, and clean tech sectors all require adaptable, analytical minds — skills many immigrants already have, but which go unrecognised due to systemic bias, inadequate bridging programs, and a lack of culturally aware mentorship.
What Governments and Institutions Can Do — Now
Australia cannot afford to waste talent.
If we’re serious about economic revitalisation, the government and private sector must support grassroots initiatives like SyncSkills, which are already doing the heavy lifting of:
Upskilling immigrants into high-demand tech roles
Addressing skill shortages in critical industries
Creating local case studies of immigrant success to inspire more participation
Here’s how to help:
Fund community-led upskilling initiatives. Provide grants to proven programs like SyncSkills that are generating real employment outcomes.
Offer fast-tracked local accreditation pathways. Make it easier for immigrants to transfer their foreign qualifications into recognised Australian credentials.
Partner with industry. Encourage corporations to sponsor skilled immigrant bootcamps and adopt inclusive hiring frameworks.
Measure what matters. Shift employment metrics to track underemployment and skill alignment, not just job placement.
Final Word: A Call to Action
If productivity is the heartbeat of a strong economy, then SyncSkills is doing CPR on a system that’s been flatlining.
This isn’t charity. It’s strategy. Empowering African immigrants — and all skilled migrants — to thrive in high-value roles is not only good for them, but essential for Australia’s future competitiveness.
It’s time our policymakers and institutions got behind the movement.
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