Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Nicaragua
Nicaragua: Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) was 30.5% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Nicaragua, 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 Nicaragua is 30.5%, measured in 2025.
The figure is down 0.6% on the previous year and down 1.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Nicaragua peaked at 36.9% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 30.2%, in 2017.
That places Nicaragua 59th out of 187 countries 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 Nicaragua, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 32.8% | — |
| 1992 | 33.5% | +2.1% |
| 1993 | 33.3% | -0.5% |
| 1994 | 34.3% | +3.0% |
| 1995 | 34.6% | +0.8% |
| 1996 | 34.8% | +0.7% |
| 1997 | 35.6% | +2.1% |
| 1998 | 35.7% | +0.5% |
| 1999 | 35.8% | +0.3% |
| 2000 | 36.9% | +2.9% |
| 2001 | 36.6% | -0.9% |
| 2002 | 35.7% | -2.4% |
| 2003 | 34.6% | -2.9% |
| 2004 | 34.5% | -0.5% |
| 2005 | 33.0% | -4.3% |
| 2006 | 33.3% | +0.9% |
| 2007 | 33.7% | +1.3% |
| 2008 | 32.3% | -4.4% |
| 2009 | 32.7% | +1.5% |
| 2010 | 32.6% | -0.4% |
| 2011 | 32.5% | -0.4% |
| 2012 | 32.2% | -0.8% |
| 2013 | 31.8% | -1.4% |
| 2014 | 31.4% | -1.2% |
| 2015 | 31.0% | -1.3% |
| 2016 | 30.5% | -1.5% |
| 2017 | 30.2% | -1.1% |
| 2018 | 30.4% | +0.7% |
| 2019 | 30.6% | +0.7% |
| 2020 | 31.7% | +3.4% |
| 2021 | 31.7% | -0.1% |
| 2022 | 31.5% | -0.6% |
| 2023 | 31.0% | -1.5% |
| 2024 | 30.7% | -1.1% |
| 2025 | 30.5% | -0.6% |
Nicaragua compared with similar countries
- Nicaragua's 30.5% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 35.4%, 86% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Nicaragua's 30.5% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 11.5%, 2.7× the median. (31 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 34.5% | 32.8% | 35.8% | 9 |
| 2000s | 34.3% | 32.3% | 36.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 31.3% | 30.2% | 32.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 31.2% | 30.5% | 31.7% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Nicaragua
More agriculture & rural data for Nicaragua
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 12.55 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.1448 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 459.4 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.8714 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.4056 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 14.5% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 14.5% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.6% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.3% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Nicaragua?
- Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Nicaragua was 30.5% 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 Nicaragua?
- The highest recorded value was 36.9% in 2000.
- What is the lowest employment in agriculture (% of total employment) recorded in Nicaragua?
- The lowest recorded value was 30.2% in 2017.
- How does Nicaragua rank for employment in agriculture (% of total employment)?
- Nicaragua ranks 59th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is employment in agriculture (% of total employment) rising or falling in Nicaragua?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Nicaragua 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).