In 2024 the working age population (16 years and above) was approximately 8.3 million of whom around 4.4 million were employed, 780 thousand were unemployed, and 3.1 million were out of labour force.
The sum of the employed and unemployed population makes the population in the labour force 5.2 million persons. The proportion of the working age population participating in the labour force has steadily increased since 2022.
It was estimated to be 62.9 % which is 3.6 percentage points higher compared to the estimated value in 2023. The rate of the population outside labour force decreased to 37.1 % in 2024 from 40.7 % observed in 2023.
In 2024, informal employment accounted for 90.4% of total employment. While the majority of Informal jobs were held by male workers (54 %), the informal employment rate was higher among females (91.6 %) compared to males (89.3 %).
Employment in the informal sector was mostly in market-oriented agriculture (48%), which decreased from 51.7% in 2023. This was followed by wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles (15.6%), which increased from 14.1% in 2023.
The construction sector accounted for 11% and remained stable compared to 2023. Transport and storage represented 7.7%, increasing from 6.7% in 2023, while manufacturing stood at 5.4%, remaining unchanged from the previous year.