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Labour · Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan · Low income
Afghanistan: the labour market
Labour force is 9.4m (2025), 59th of 187 in the world and 8th of 23 in the Middle East & North Africa. Participation rate is 37.5% (2025), 182nd of 187 in the world and 20th of 23 in the Middle East & North Africa. Women's participation is 5.1% (2025), 186th of 187 in the world and 22nd of 23 in the Middle East & North Africa.
Labour force
Afghanistan
Participation rate
AfghanistanMiddle East, North Africa, A…Low incomeWorld
13 indicators
Labour: Afghanistan in detail
Latest reported value, world rank and rank within Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan; values around 2000, 2010, 2020; group and world columns are World Bank aggregates.
| Indicator | Latest | World rank | In region | ~2000 | ~2010 | ~2020 | 10-year change | Region | Income group | World | Since 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour forceLabour force, total | 9.4m2025 | 59/187 | 8/23 | 4.7m | 6.8m | 9.1m | +10%since 2015 | 264m | 267m | 3.7bn | |
| Participation rateLabour force participation, % of 15+ | 37.5%2025 | 182/187 | 20/23 | 46.6% | 46.8% | 41.6% | −9.7 ppsince 2015 | 47.4% | 64.4% | 61.0% | |
| Women's participationFemale labour force participation, % of women 15+ | 5.1%2025 | 186/187 | 22/23 | 14.3% | 15.6% | 16.5% | −14.0 ppsince 2015 | 19.7% | 54.7% | 48.9% | |
| Employment rateEmployment to population ratio, 15+ (ILO) | 32.5%2025 | 182/187 | 20/23 | 42.9% | 43.2% | 36.7% | −10.4 ppsince 2015 | 43.7% | 61.2% | 58.1% | |
| UnemploymentUnemployment, % of labour force (ILO) | 13.4%2025 | 21/187 | 9/23 | 7.9% | 7.8% | 11.7% | +4.3 ppsince 2015 | 7.8% | 4.9% | 4.8% | |
| Female unemploymentFemale unemployment, % of female labour force (ILO) | 25.0%2025 | 11/187 | 7/23 | 10.4% | 10.3% | 16.8% | +13.4 ppsince 2015 | 12.1% | 4.7% | 4.9% | |
| Youth unemploymentYouth unemployment, ages 15–24 (ILO) | 16.8%2025 | 68/187 | 14/23 | 10.2% | 10.0% | 16.1% | +4.3 ppsince 2015 | 18.7% | 10.1% | 13.4% | |
| Youth NEET rateYouth not in education, employment or training, % | 43.8%2021 | 8/170 | 2/16 | · | · | 53.8% | — | 32.2% | — | — | |
| Wage workersWage and salaried workers, % of total employment | 16.6%2025 | 176/187 | 23/23 | 5.2% | 9.9% | 15.7% | +2.2 ppsince 2015 | 61.0% | 21.1% | 53.6% | |
| Vulnerable employmentVulnerable employment, % of total employment (ILO) | 81.8%2025 | 9/187 | 1/23 | 94.7% | 90.0% | 82.7% | −2.4 ppsince 2015 | 36.1% | 76.1% | 42.4% | |
| Jobs in agricultureEmployment in agriculture, % of total employment | 51.6%2025 | 23/187 | 1/23 | 63.5% | 51.9% | 46.0% | +8.0 ppsince 2015 | 21.7% | 59.4% | 25.8% | |
| Jobs in industryEmployment in industry, % of total employment | 18.9%2025 | 94/187 | 17/23 | 12.9% | 17.0% | 18.5% | −3.7 ppsince 2015 | 26.6% | 10.2% | 23.7% | |
| Jobs in servicesEmployment in services, % of total employment | 29.5%2025 | 174/187 | 23/23 | 23.7% | 31.2% | 35.5% | −4.3 ppsince 2015 | 51.7% | 30.4% | 50.6% |
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (CC BY 4.0)“·” — no value reported within two years of that date. World rank counts countries with a recent value.
Better than ten years ago
- Wage workers+2.2 pp16.6% in 2025
- Vulnerable employment−2.4 pp81.8% in 2025
Worse than ten years ago
- Women's participation−14.0 pp5.1% in 2025
- Employment rate−10.4 pp32.5% in 2025
- Unemployment+4.3 pp13.4% in 2025
- Female unemployment+13.4 pp25.0% in 2025
Only indicators where higher or lower is clearly better are rated (for example, unemployment down is better, life expectancy up is better).
neighbours
Afghanistan and its neighbours
Countries sharing a land border with Afghanistan. Latest values since 2005; the highest in each row is marked.
| Indicator | Afghanistan | China | Pakistan | Iran | Uzbekistan | Tajikistan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour force | 9.4m2025 | 768m2025 | 85.2m2025 | 29.5m2025 | 14.6m2025 | 2.6m2025 |
| Participation rate | 37.5%2025 | 64.6%2025 | 52.3%2025 | 41.0%2025 | 57.5%2025 | 38.3%2025 |
| Women's participation | 5.1%2025 | 59.1%2025 | 24.0%2025 | 14.0%2025 | 41.2%2025 | 21.9%2025 |
| Employment rate | 32.5%2025 | 61.6%2025 | 49.5%2025 | 37.6%2025 | 54.8%2025 | 35.6%2025 |
| Unemployment | 13.4%2025 | 4.6%2025 | 5.4%2025 | 8.3%2025 | 4.6%2025 | 6.9%2025 |
| Female unemployment | 25.0%2025 | 4.0%2025 | 6.9%2025 | 15.6%2025 | 6.6%2025 | 4.0%2025 |
| Youth unemployment | 16.8%2025 | 15.8%2025 | 9.6%2025 | 21.9%2025 | 11.4%2025 | 14.6%2025 |
| Youth NEET rate | 43.8%2021 | — | 28.5%2025 | 24.3%2024 | — | 41.3%2016 |
| Wage workers | 16.6%2025 | 62.3%2025 | 43.0%2025 | 57.1%2025 | 54.6%2025 | 68.7%2025 |