Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Lao People's Democratic Republic
Lao People's Democratic Republic: Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) was 68.6% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Lao People's Democratic Republic, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
Lao People's Democratic Republic recorded 68.6% for employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
The figure is down 0.5% on the previous year and down 6.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Lao People's Democratic Republic peaked at 90.1% in 1991 and was at its lowest, 68.6%, in 2025.
Lao People's Democratic Republic ranks 6th of 187 countries 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 (% of total employment) in Lao People's Democratic Republic, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 90.1% | — |
| 1992 | 90.1% | -0.1% |
| 1993 | 89.9% | -0.2% |
| 1994 | 89.6% | -0.3% |
| 1995 | 89.3% | -0.3% |
| 1996 | 88.9% | -0.5% |
| 1997 | 88.5% | -0.3% |
| 1998 | 87.9% | -0.7% |
| 1999 | 87.4% | -0.6% |
| 2000 | 86.9% | -0.6% |
| 2001 | 86.3% | -0.6% |
| 2002 | 85.7% | -0.7% |
| 2003 | 85.1% | -0.7% |
| 2004 | 84.3% | -1.0% |
| 2005 | 83.5% | -0.9% |
| 2006 | 82.7% | -1.0% |
| 2007 | 81.8% | -1.1% |
| 2008 | 80.8% | -1.2% |
| 2009 | 79.9% | -1.2% |
| 2010 | 78.9% | -1.2% |
| 2011 | 77.9% | -1.3% |
| 2012 | 76.7% | -1.5% |
| 2013 | 75.4% | -1.7% |
| 2014 | 74.2% | -1.6% |
| 2015 | 73.0% | -1.7% |
| 2016 | 71.9% | -1.5% |
| 2017 | 70.5% | -1.8% |
| 2018 | 69.9% | -0.9% |
| 2019 | 69.4% | -0.7% |
| 2020 | 70.0% | +0.9% |
| 2021 | 69.9% | -0.1% |
| 2022 | 69.6% | -0.4% |
| 2023 | 69.4% | -0.3% |
| 2024 | 68.9% | -0.7% |
| 2025 | 68.6% | -0.5% |
Lao People's Democratic Republic compared with similar countries
- Lao People's Democratic Republic's 68.6% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 35.4%, 1.9× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Lao People's Democratic Republic's 68.6% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 23.6%, 2.9× the median. (29 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 89.1% | 87.4% | 90.1% | 9 |
| 2000s | 83.7% | 79.9% | 86.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 73.8% | 69.4% | 78.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 69.4% | 68.6% | 70.0% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Lao People's Democratic Republic
More agriculture & rural data for Lao People's Democratic Republic
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 9.89 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.1662 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 386.32 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.0583 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.5969 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 16.6% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 16.6% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 10.3% (2023)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 4.6% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Lao People's Democratic Republic?
- Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Lao People's Democratic Republic was 68.6% 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 Lao People's Democratic Republic?
- The highest recorded value was 90.1% in 1991.
- What is the lowest employment in agriculture (% of total employment) recorded in Lao People's Democratic Republic?
- The lowest recorded value was 68.6% in 2025.
- How does Lao People's Democratic Republic rank for employment in agriculture (% of total employment)?
- Lao People's Democratic Republic ranks 6th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is employment in agriculture (% of total employment) rising or falling in Lao People's Democratic Republic?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Lao People's Democratic Republic 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).