Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Zambia
Zambia: Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) was 54.5% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Zambia, 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 Zambia is 54.5%, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
That represents a change of down 1.4% on the previous year and down 11.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Zambia peaked at 77.1% in 2003 and was at its lowest, 54.5%, in 2025.
That places Zambia 18th out of 187 countries with data for 2025, putting it 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 Zambia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 74.6% | — |
| 1992 | 75.0% | +0.5% |
| 1993 | 75.1% | +0.1% |
| 1994 | 74.8% | -0.4% |
| 1995 | 74.9% | +0.1% |
| 1996 | 74.7% | -0.3% |
| 1997 | 74.6% | -0.0% |
| 1998 | 75.0% | +0.5% |
| 1999 | 75.8% | +1.0% |
| 2000 | 76.0% | +0.3% |
| 2001 | 76.5% | +0.7% |
| 2002 | 76.9% | +0.5% |
| 2003 | 77.1% | +0.2% |
| 2004 | 77.1% | -0.0% |
| 2005 | 77.0% | -0.1% |
| 2006 | 76.8% | -0.2% |
| 2007 | 76.6% | -0.3% |
| 2008 | 76.4% | -0.3% |
| 2009 | 73.5% | -3.8% |
| 2010 | 70.2% | -4.5% |
| 2011 | 66.9% | -4.7% |
| 2012 | 63.0% | -5.9% |
| 2013 | 62.6% | -0.6% |
| 2014 | 62.0% | -1.0% |
| 2015 | 61.3% | -1.1% |
| 2016 | 61.1% | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 60.9% | -0.4% |
| 2018 | 59.8% | -1.8% |
| 2019 | 57.4% | -4.0% |
| 2020 | 59.1% | +3.0% |
| 2021 | 57.8% | -2.2% |
| 2022 | 56.1% | -3.0% |
| 2023 | 56.0% | -0.2% |
| 2024 | 55.3% | -1.2% |
| 2025 | 54.5% | -1.4% |
Zambia compared with similar countries
- Zambia's 54.5% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 35.4%, 1.5× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Zambia's 54.5% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 44.5%, 1.2× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 74.9% | 74.6% | 75.8% | 9 |
| 2000s | 76.4% | 73.5% | 77.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 62.5% | 57.4% | 70.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 56.5% | 54.5% | 59.1% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
- 15 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 58.5% compare
- 16 Eritrea 55.5% compare
- 17 Equatorial Guinea 55.3% compare
- 19 Zimbabwe 54.3% compare
- 20 Korea, Democratic People's Republic of 54.1% compare
- 21 Angola 51.9% compare
More agriculture & rural data for Zambia
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 65.37 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0411 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 54.11 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 1.97 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0004 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.5408 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 4.1% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 4.1% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.4% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.7% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Zambia?
- Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Zambia was 54.5% 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 Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 77.1% in 2003.
- What is the lowest employment in agriculture (% of total employment) recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 54.5% in 2025.
- How does Zambia rank for employment in agriculture (% of total employment)?
- Zambia ranks 18th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is employment in agriculture (% of total employment) rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 11.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Zambia 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).