Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) was 2.5% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Saudi Arabia, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
Saudi Arabia recorded 2.5% 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 2.9% on the previous year and down 39.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Saudi Arabia peaked at 7.8% in 1991 and was at its lowest, 2.5%, in 2025.
That places Saudi Arabia 154th out of 187 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 7.8% | — |
| 1992 | 7.7% | -1.6% |
| 1993 | 7.5% | -2.3% |
| 1994 | 7.3% | -2.1% |
| 1995 | 7.2% | -1.7% |
| 1996 | 7.1% | -2.0% |
| 1997 | 6.9% | -2.0% |
| 1998 | 6.7% | -2.7% |
| 1999 | 6.6% | -1.3% |
| 2000 | 6.5% | -1.8% |
| 2001 | 6.4% | -1.9% |
| 2002 | 6.3% | -1.7% |
| 2003 | 6.1% | -2.9% |
| 2004 | 5.9% | -3.1% |
| 2005 | 5.8% | -2.4% |
| 2006 | 5.6% | -2.6% |
| 2007 | 5.5% | -2.9% |
| 2008 | 5.3% | -2.8% |
| 2009 | 5.1% | -3.4% |
| 2010 | 4.9% | -3.6% |
| 2011 | 4.8% | -3.5% |
| 2012 | 4.6% | -3.3% |
| 2013 | 4.5% | -3.1% |
| 2014 | 4.3% | -3.6% |
| 2015 | 4.1% | -4.0% |
| 2016 | 4.0% | -3.0% |
| 2017 | 3.9% | -2.8% |
| 2018 | 3.1% | -21.9% |
| 2019 | 3.1% | +1.5% |
| 2020 | 3.2% | +2.4% |
| 2021 | 2.7% | -15.9% |
| 2022 | 2.9% | +8.2% |
| 2023 | 2.7% | -5.0% |
| 2024 | 2.6% | -6.2% |
| 2025 | 2.5% | -2.9% |
Saudi Arabia compared with similar countries
- Saudi Arabia's 2.5% is above the median for high income countries, which is 2.4%, 1.0× the median. (62 countries reporting)
- Saudi Arabia's 2.5% is below the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 6.3%, 39% of the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 7.2% | 6.6% | 7.8% | 9 |
| 2000s | 5.9% | 5.1% | 6.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.1% | 3.1% | 4.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.8% | 2.5% | 3.2% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
More agriculture & rural data for Saudi Arabia
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 5.2 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0259 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 894.48 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 3.68 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.1539 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 2.6% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 2.6% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.3% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.6% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Saudi Arabia?
- Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Saudi Arabia was 2.5% 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 Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 7.8% in 1991.
- What is the lowest employment in agriculture (% of total employment) recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.5% in 2025.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for employment in agriculture (% of total employment)?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 154th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is employment in agriculture (% of total employment) rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 39.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia 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).