Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Cameroon
Cameroon: Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) was 41.9% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Cameroon, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
Cameroon recorded 41.9% for employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
The figure is down 1.2% on the previous year and down 10.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Cameroon peaked at 65.7% in 1994 and was at its lowest, 41.9%, in 2025.
That places Cameroon 37th out of 187 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Cameroon, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 65.0% | — |
| 1992 | 65.3% | +0.4% |
| 1993 | 65.7% | +0.6% |
| 1994 | 65.7% | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 65.5% | -0.3% |
| 1996 | 65.3% | -0.4% |
| 1997 | 65.0% | -0.4% |
| 1998 | 64.7% | -0.5% |
| 1999 | 64.4% | -0.5% |
| 2000 | 64.1% | -0.5% |
| 2001 | 63.7% | -0.5% |
| 2002 | 63.3% | -0.6% |
| 2003 | 62.7% | -1.1% |
| 2004 | 61.7% | -1.5% |
| 2005 | 60.8% | -1.4% |
| 2006 | 60.3% | -0.8% |
| 2007 | 59.8% | -0.8% |
| 2008 | 58.3% | -2.6% |
| 2009 | 56.7% | -2.7% |
| 2010 | 55.1% | -2.8% |
| 2011 | 53.3% | -3.3% |
| 2012 | 51.4% | -3.5% |
| 2013 | 49.5% | -3.8% |
| 2014 | 47.6% | -3.8% |
| 2015 | 46.7% | -2.0% |
| 2016 | 45.7% | -2.0% |
| 2017 | 44.8% | -2.0% |
| 2018 | 43.9% | -2.1% |
| 2019 | 43.0% | -1.9% |
| 2020 | 44.0% | +2.3% |
| 2021 | 43.8% | -0.4% |
| 2022 | 43.3% | -1.2% |
| 2023 | 42.9% | -1.0% |
| 2024 | 42.4% | -1.2% |
| 2025 | 41.9% | -1.2% |
Cameroon compared with similar countries
- Cameroon's 41.9% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 35.4%, 1.2× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Cameroon's 41.9% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 44.5%, 94% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 65.2% | 64.4% | 65.7% | 9 |
| 2000s | 61.1% | 56.7% | 64.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 48.1% | 43.0% | 55.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 43.1% | 41.9% | 44.0% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Cameroon
More agriculture & rural data for Cameroon
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 0.9031 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.1685 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 332.28 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 1.98 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.4433 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 16.8% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 16.8% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 14.9% (2023)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.0% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Cameroon?
- Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Cameroon was 41.9% 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 Cameroon?
- The highest recorded value was 65.7% in 1994.
- What is the lowest employment in agriculture (% of total employment) recorded in Cameroon?
- The lowest recorded value was 41.9% in 2025.
- How does Cameroon rank for employment in agriculture (% of total employment)?
- Cameroon ranks 37th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is employment in agriculture (% of total employment) rising or falling in Cameroon?
- Over the last ten years it is down 10.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Cameroon 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.
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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).