ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Employment in agriculture by status in South Africa
South Africa: ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Employment in agriculture by status was 274.87 1000 No in 2024. ▲ Rising
ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Employment in agriculture by status in South Africa, 2000–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in 1000 No.
Analysis
In 2024, ilostat - labour force survey — employment in agriculture by status in South Africa stood at 274.87 1000 No.
The figure is down 1.9% on the previous year and up 35.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, ilostat - labour force survey — employment in agriculture by status in South Africa peaked at 283.7 1000 No in 2015 and was at its lowest, 193.21 1000 No, in 2011.
That places South Africa 10th out of 87 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Employment in agriculture by status in South Africa, year by year
| Year | 1000 No | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 278.26 1000 No | — |
| 2001 | 241.97 1000 No | -13.0% |
| 2002 | 269.04 1000 No | +11.2% |
| 2003 | 245.89 1000 No | -8.6% |
| 2004 | 251.25 1000 No | +2.2% |
| 2005 | 198.41 1000 No | -21.0% |
| 2006 | 200.46 1000 No | +1.0% |
| 2007 | 209.12 1000 No | +4.3% |
| 2008 | 239.09 1000 No | +14.3% |
| 2009 | 211.02 1000 No | -11.7% |
| 2010 | 208.77 1000 No | -1.1% |
| 2011 | 193.21 1000 No | -7.5% |
| 2012 | 212.89 1000 No | +10.2% |
| 2013 | 216.43 1000 No | +1.7% |
| 2014 | 202.51 1000 No | -6.4% |
| 2015 | 283.7 1000 No | +40.1% |
| 2016 | 251.13 1000 No | -11.5% |
| 2017 | 256.02 1000 No | +1.9% |
| 2018 | 269.2 1000 No | +5.1% |
| 2019 | 260.59 1000 No | -3.2% |
| 2020 | 237.18 1000 No | -9.0% |
| 2021 | 224.08 1000 No | -5.5% |
| 2022 | 258.52 1000 No | +15.4% |
| 2023 | 280.2 1000 No | +8.4% |
| 2024 | 274.87 1000 No | -1.9% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 274.87 1000 No is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 9.23 1000 No, 29.8× the median. (26 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 274.87 1000 No is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 32.02 1000 No, 8.6× the median. (10 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 234.45 1000 No | 198.41 1000 No | 278.26 1000 No | 10 |
| 2010s | 235.44 1000 No | 193.21 1000 No | 283.7 1000 No | 10 |
| 2020s | 254.97 1000 No | 224.08 1000 No | 280.2 1000 No | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
- 7 Philippines 681.05 1000 No compare
- 7 Republic of Moldova 18.79 1000 No compare
- 8 Mexico 539.55 1000 No compare
- 9 Thailand 398.85 1000 No compare
- 11 Bangladesh 269.53 1000 No compare
- 12 Japan 255.04 1000 No compare
- 13 Sri Lanka 242.41 1000 No compare
More agriculture & rural data for South Africa
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 7.11 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0283 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 186.56 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.812 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.3618 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 2.8% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 2.8% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 2.0% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.0% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is ilostat - labour force survey — employment in agriculture by status in South Africa?
- Ilostat - labour force survey — employment in agriculture by status in South Africa was 274.87 1000 No in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest ilostat - labour force survey — employment in agriculture by status recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 283.7 1000 No in 2015.
- What is the lowest ilostat - labour force survey — employment in agriculture by status recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 193.21 1000 No in 2011.
- How does South Africa rank for ilostat - labour force survey — employment in agriculture by status?
- South Africa ranks 10th out of 87 countries with data for 2024.
- Is ilostat - labour force survey — employment in agriculture by status rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 35.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of ILOSTAT - Labour force survey — Employment in agriculture by status of employment, employees — Female — Value. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
The FAOSTAT Employment indicators domain focuses on indicators related to employment in agrifood systems and rural areas. The update is performed yearly, using data from the International Labour Organization (ILO) database that contains a rich set of indicators from a wide range of topics related to labour statistics. The indicators published in FAOSTAT are derived from the labour force statistics (LFS) and rural and urban labour markets (RURURB) databases of the ILOSTAT database. In addition, the ILO modelled estimates and projections (ILOEST) are used to provide information on employment in agriculture. FAOSTAT also publishes indicators on employment in agrifood systems (AFS) from 2000 at the national, regional, and global levels, using a methodology developed by the FAO to estimate the number of people employed within these systems.