Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)
Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD): Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) was 25.4% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD), 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) recorded 25.4% for employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.8% on the previous year and down 12.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) peaked at 36.2% in 1994 and was at its lowest, 25.4%, in 2025.
That places Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) 22nd out of 47 groups with data for 2025, putting it 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 Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD), year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 36.0% | — |
| 1992 | 36.2% | +0.5% |
| 1993 | 35.5% | -1.8% |
| 1994 | 36.2% | +1.8% |
| 1995 | 34.9% | -3.5% |
| 1996 | 34.5% | -1.2% |
| 1997 | 33.1% | -4.0% |
| 1998 | 33.9% | +2.4% |
| 1999 | 33.7% | -0.6% |
| 2000 | 34.1% | +1.1% |
| 2001 | 33.6% | -1.4% |
| 2002 | 33.0% | -1.8% |
| 2003 | 33.0% | -0.1% |
| 2004 | 33.3% | +1.2% |
| 2005 | 32.8% | -1.7% |
| 2006 | 32.5% | -0.7% |
| 2007 | 32.5% | -0.2% |
| 2008 | 32.5% | -0.1% |
| 2009 | 31.4% | -3.1% |
| 2010 | 30.7% | -2.4% |
| 2011 | 30.8% | +0.3% |
| 2012 | 30.3% | -1.7% |
| 2013 | 30.1% | -0.5% |
| 2014 | 29.8% | -1.1% |
| 2015 | 29.0% | -2.6% |
| 2016 | 29.3% | +0.8% |
| 2017 | 28.2% | -3.5% |
| 2018 | 26.7% | -5.6% |
| 2019 | 26.9% | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 27.2% | +1.2% |
| 2021 | 26.6% | -2.3% |
| 2022 | 26.0% | -2.2% |
| 2023 | 25.7% | -1.3% |
| 2024 | 25.6% | -0.2% |
| 2025 | 25.4% | -0.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 34.9% | 33.1% | 36.2% | 9 |
| 2000s | 32.9% | 31.4% | 34.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 29.2% | 26.7% | 30.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 26.1% | 25.4% | 27.2% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)
- 19 Zimbabwe 54.3% compare
- 20 North Korea 54.1% compare
- 21 Angola 51.9% compare
- 22 Burkina Faso 51.8% compare
- 23 Afghanistan 51.6% compare
- 24 Moldova 50.5% compare
- 25 Guinea 47.4% compare
More agriculture & rural data for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 2.5 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 297.43 billion current US$ (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 14.1% (2025)
- Rural population 354.69 million (2025)
- Rural population growth 1.2% (2025)
- Rural population 47.4% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 2.3% (2019)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.6% (2017)
- Rural population, per capita 0.4739 units per person (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
All data for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) →
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)?
- Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) was 25.4% 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 Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)?
- The highest recorded value was 36.2% in 1994.
- What is the lowest employment in agriculture (% of total employment) recorded in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)?
- The lowest recorded value was 25.4% in 2025.
- How does Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) rank for employment in agriculture (% of total employment)?
- Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) ranks 22nd out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is employment in agriculture (% of total employment) rising or falling in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD)?
- Over the last ten years it is down 12.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) 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).