Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Arab World
Arab World: Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) was 13.4% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Arab World, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
The most recent figure for employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Arab World is 13.4%, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
That represents a change of down 2.2% on the previous year and down 27.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Arab World peaked at 33.9% in 1991 and was at its lowest, 13.4%, in 2025.
Arab World ranks 34th of 47 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Arab World, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 33.9% | — |
| 1992 | 33.4% | -1.3% |
| 1993 | 32.3% | -3.3% |
| 1994 | 31.7% | -2.0% |
| 1995 | 31.5% | -0.5% |
| 1996 | 30.8% | -2.3% |
| 1997 | 30.0% | -2.7% |
| 1998 | 29.3% | -2.4% |
| 1999 | 28.9% | -1.3% |
| 2000 | 28.8% | -0.5% |
| 2001 | 27.8% | -3.2% |
| 2002 | 27.0% | -3.1% |
| 2003 | 26.9% | -0.3% |
| 2004 | 26.9% | +0.2% |
| 2005 | 26.0% | -3.4% |
| 2006 | 25.3% | -2.8% |
| 2007 | 24.8% | -2.1% |
| 2008 | 23.6% | -4.8% |
| 2009 | 22.6% | -4.0% |
| 2010 | 21.7% | -4.1% |
| 2011 | 21.3% | -1.9% |
| 2012 | 20.4% | -4.0% |
| 2013 | 20.1% | -1.7% |
| 2014 | 19.5% | -2.8% |
| 2015 | 18.6% | -4.7% |
| 2016 | 18.0% | -3.1% |
| 2017 | 17.9% | -0.6% |
| 2018 | 16.9% | -5.5% |
| 2019 | 16.7% | -1.5% |
| 2020 | 17.0% | +1.7% |
| 2021 | 16.8% | -1.3% |
| 2022 | 16.3% | -3.0% |
| 2023 | 13.9% | -14.5% |
| 2024 | 13.7% | -1.3% |
| 2025 | 13.4% | -2.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 31.3% | 28.9% | 33.9% | 9 |
| 2000s | 26.0% | 22.6% | 28.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 19.1% | 16.7% | 21.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 15.2% | 13.4% | 17.0% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Arab World
- 31 Vanuatu 44.5% compare
- 32 Sierra Leone 44.5% compare
- 33 Bangladesh 44.3% compare
- 34 Tajikistan 43.3% compare
- 35 Solomon Islands 42.5% compare
- 36 Bhutan 42.4% compare
- 37 Cameroon 41.9% compare
More agriculture & rural data for Arab World
- Rural population, per capita 0.3996 units per person (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 225.78 billion current US$ (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 5.9% (2025)
- Rural population 201.16 million (2025)
- Rural population growth 1.6% (2025)
- Rural population 40.0% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.7% (2023)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.1% (2023)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0595 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Arab World?
- Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Arab World was 13.4% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest employment in agriculture (% of total employment) recorded in Arab World?
- The highest recorded value was 33.9% in 1991.
- What is the lowest employment in agriculture (% of total employment) recorded in Arab World?
- The lowest recorded value was 13.4% in 2025.
- How does Arab World rank for employment in agriculture (% of total employment)?
- Arab World ranks 34th out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is employment in agriculture (% of total employment) rising or falling in Arab World?
- Over the last ten years it is down 27.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Arab World data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) (modeled ILO estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
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).