Employment in agriculture, male (% of male employment) in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)
Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries): Employment in agriculture, male (% of male employment) was 50.3% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Employment in agriculture, male (% of male employment) in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries), 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) recorded 50.3% for employment in agriculture, male (% of male employment) in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.9% on the previous year and down 6.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment in agriculture, male (% of male employment) in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) peaked at 60.5% in 1995 and was at its lowest, 50.3%, in 2025.
Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) ranks 4th of 47 groups on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Employment in agriculture, male (% of male employment) in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries), year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 60.0% | — |
| 1992 | 60.3% | +0.4% |
| 1993 | 60.3% | +0.1% |
| 1994 | 60.4% | +0.1% |
| 1995 | 60.5% | +0.1% |
| 1996 | 60.2% | -0.4% |
| 1997 | 60.2% | -0.1% |
| 1998 | 60.0% | -0.3% |
| 1999 | 59.9% | -0.2% |
| 2000 | 59.6% | -0.5% |
| 2001 | 59.5% | -0.2% |
| 2002 | 59.4% | -0.1% |
| 2003 | 59.2% | -0.4% |
| 2004 | 58.6% | -0.9% |
| 2005 | 58.3% | -0.6% |
| 2006 | 57.9% | -0.7% |
| 2007 | 57.4% | -0.7% |
| 2008 | 57.1% | -0.7% |
| 2009 | 56.7% | -0.6% |
| 2010 | 55.9% | -1.5% |
| 2011 | 55.3% | -1.0% |
| 2012 | 54.8% | -0.8% |
| 2013 | 54.7% | -0.3% |
| 2014 | 54.1% | -1.1% |
| 2015 | 53.6% | -0.9% |
| 2016 | 53.4% | -0.3% |
| 2017 | 52.9% | -1.0% |
| 2018 | 52.1% | -1.6% |
| 2019 | 51.3% | -1.6% |
| 2020 | 52.7% | +2.7% |
| 2021 | 52.4% | -0.5% |
| 2022 | 51.5% | -1.7% |
| 2023 | 51.5% | +0.1% |
| 2024 | 50.8% | -1.4% |
| 2025 | 50.3% | -0.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 60.2% | 59.9% | 60.5% | 9 |
| 2000s | 58.4% | 56.7% | 59.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 53.8% | 51.3% | 55.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 51.5% | 50.3% | 52.7% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)
More agriculture & rural data for Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 10.7 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 395.96 billion current US$ (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 17.9% (2025)
- Rural population 731.42 million (2025)
- Rural population growth 1.5% (2025)
- Rural population 55.3% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.0% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 2.6% (2024)
- Rural population, per capita 0.5534 units per person (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment in agriculture, male (% of male employment) in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- Employment in agriculture, male (% of male employment) in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) was 50.3% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest employment in agriculture, male (% of male employment) recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- The highest recorded value was 60.5% in 1995.
- What is the lowest employment in agriculture, male (% of male employment) recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- The lowest recorded value was 50.3% in 2025.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) rank for employment in agriculture, male (% of male employment)?
- Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) ranks 4th out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is employment in agriculture, male (% of male employment) rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Employment in agriculture, male (% of male employment) (modeled ILO estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Employment is defined as persons of working age who were engaged in any activity to produce goods or provide services for pay or profit, whether at work during the reference period or not at work due to temporary absence from a job, or to working-time arrangement. The agriculture sector consists of activities in agriculture, hunting, forestry and fishing, in accordance with division 1 (ISIC 2) or categories A-B (ISIC 3) or category A (ISIC 4).