Employment in agrifood systems by subindustry and sex: Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa: Employment in agrifood systems by subindustry and sex: Agriculture was 108,588 1000 No in 2023. ▲ Rising
Employment in agrifood systems by subindustry and sex: Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa, 2000–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in 1000 No.
Analysis
Sub-Saharan Africa recorded 108,588 1000 No for employment in agrifood systems by subindustry and sex: agriculture in 2023. That is the highest value across all 24 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.5% on the previous year and up 18.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment in agrifood systems by subindustry and sex: agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa peaked at 108,588 1000 No in 2023 and was at its lowest, 71,276 1000 No, in 2000.
Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 5th of 30 groups on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.
Employment in agrifood systems by subindustry and sex: Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | 1000 No | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 71,276 1000 No | — |
| 2001 | 73,272 1000 No | +2.8% |
| 2002 | 75,640 1000 No | +3.2% |
| 2003 | 77,752 1000 No | +2.8% |
| 2004 | 79,690 1000 No | +2.5% |
| 2005 | 81,693 1000 No | +2.5% |
| 2006 | 83,223 1000 No | +1.9% |
| 2007 | 84,575 1000 No | +1.6% |
| 2008 | 85,853 1000 No | +1.5% |
| 2009 | 86,937 1000 No | +1.3% |
| 2010 | 87,506 1000 No | +0.7% |
| 2011 | 89,297 1000 No | +2.0% |
| 2012 | 89,374 1000 No | +0.1% |
| 2013 | 92,015 1000 No | +3.0% |
| 2014 | 92,684 1000 No | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 93,626 1000 No | +1.0% |
| 2016 | 95,004 1000 No | +1.5% |
| 2017 | 95,502 1000 No | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 96,234 1000 No | +0.8% |
| 2019 | 96,408 1000 No | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 99,782 1000 No | +3.5% |
| 2021 | 103,012 1000 No | +3.2% |
| 2022 | 104,917 1000 No | +1.8% |
| 2023 | 108,588 1000 No | +3.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 79,991 1000 No | 71,276 1000 No | 86,937 1000 No | 10 |
| 2010s | 92,765 1000 No | 87,506 1000 No | 96,408 1000 No | 10 |
| 2020s | 104,075 1000 No | 99,782 1000 No | 108,588 1000 No | 4 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa
- 2 China, mainland 66,934 1000 No compare
- 3 Bangladesh 19,324 1000 No compare
- 4 Democratic Republic of the Congo 11,781 1000 No compare
- 4 Indonesia 14,702 1000 No compare
- 5 Nigeria 12,633 1000 No compare
- 5 United Republic of Tanzania 10,304 1000 No compare
- 6 Pakistan 11,746 1000 No compare
- 6 Viet Nam 7,147 1000 No compare
- 7 Democratic People's Republic of Korea 4,748 1000 No compare
- 7 Ethiopia 11,463 1000 No compare
- 8 Uganda 7,287 1000 No compare
More agriculture & rural data for Sub-Saharan Africa
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 10.7 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.5534 units per person (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.1791 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 299.6 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 1.53 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 2.6% (2024)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 395.96 billion current US$ (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 17.9% (2025)
- Rural population 731.42 million (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment in agrifood systems by subindustry and sex: agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Employment in agrifood systems by subindustry and sex: agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa was 108,588 1000 No in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest employment in agrifood systems by subindustry and sex: agriculture recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 108,588 1000 No in 2023.
- What is the lowest employment in agrifood systems by subindustry and sex: agriculture recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 71,276 1000 No in 2000.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa rank for employment in agrifood systems by subindustry and sex: agriculture?
- Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 5th out of 30 groups with data for 2023.
- Is employment in agrifood systems by subindustry and sex: agriculture rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 18.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Employment in agrifood systems by subindustry and sex: Agriculture — Value — Female — All age ranges or no breakdown by age — National — Agriculture. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO).
About this data
The Suite of Gender Indicators presents a set of indicators relevant to agrifood systems that are disaggregated by sex, with the aim of highlighting gender differences across agrifood systems. The initial set of indicators is based on those used in FAO’s 2023 Status of Women in Agrifood Systems (SWAFS) report and on the recommendations of an expert consultation held in December 2023, and covers key dimensions including economic participation, governance, agency, social norms, assets and services, education, health, and nutrition. Indicator selection was informed by expert judgment and by the availability of data with sufficient geographic and temporal coverage to enable meaningful comparisons across regions and over time. While most indicators are produced and published by FAO and other international organizations, the objective of this domain is to provide a one-stop shop for sex-disaggregated data on agrifood systems.