Number of people employed in agriculture in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Number of people employed in agriculture was 2.19 million people in 2025. ▼ Falling
Number of people employed in agriculture in Sri Lanka, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates, via World Bank (2026) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
Sri Lanka recorded 2.19 million people for number of people employed in agriculture in 2025.
The figure is down 0.7% on the previous year and down 8.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of people employed in agriculture in Sri Lanka peaked at 2.77 million people in 2001 and was at its lowest, 2.01 million people, in 1996.
That places Sri Lanka 50th out of 186 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.
Number of people employed in agriculture in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 2.20 million people | — |
| 1992 | 2.26 million people | +2.7% |
| 1993 | 2.09 million people | -7.4% |
| 1994 | 2.35 million people | +12.2% |
| 1995 | 2.11 million people | -9.9% |
| 1996 | 2.01 million people | -4.7% |
| 1997 | 2.23 million people | +10.7% |
| 1998 | 2.76 million people | +23.6% |
| 1999 | 2.74 million people | -0.7% |
| 2000 | 2.72 million people | -0.7% |
| 2001 | 2.77 million people | +2.0% |
| 2002 | 2.75 million people | -0.8% |
| 2003 | 2.77 million people | +0.8% |
| 2004 | 2.68 million people | -3.2% |
| 2005 | 2.61 million people | -2.8% |
| 2006 | 2.59 million people | -0.7% |
| 2007 | 2.56 million people | -1.3% |
| 2008 | 2.55 million people | -0.2% |
| 2009 | 2.51 million people | -1.6% |
| 2010 | 2.49 million people | -0.7% |
| 2011 | 2.45 million people | -1.8% |
| 2012 | 2.48 million people | +1.3% |
| 2013 | 2.37 million people | -4.6% |
| 2014 | 2.25 million people | -4.8% |
| 2015 | 2.40 million people | +6.7% |
| 2016 | 2.31 million people | -4.0% |
| 2017 | 2.26 million people | -2.0% |
| 2018 | 2.14 million people | -5.5% |
| 2019 | 2.16 million people | +1.1% |
| 2020 | 2.24 million people | +3.9% |
| 2021 | 2.26 million people | +0.7% |
| 2022 | 2.22 million people | -1.6% |
| 2023 | 2.14 million people | -3.8% |
| 2024 | 2.21 million people | +3.3% |
| 2025 | 2.19 million people | -0.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 2.31 million people | 2.01 million people | 2.76 million people | 9 |
| 2000s | 2.65 million people | 2.51 million people | 2.77 million people | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.33 million people | 2.14 million people | 2.49 million people | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.21 million people | 2.14 million people | 2.26 million people | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
More agriculture & rural data for Sri Lanka
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 9.1 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0836 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 418.3 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.9172 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.7955 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 8.4% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 8.4% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 2.7% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.9% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of people employed in agriculture in Sri Lanka?
- Number of people employed in agriculture in Sri Lanka was 2.19 million people in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates, via World Bank (2026) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest number of people employed in agriculture recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 2.77 million people in 2001.
- What is the lowest number of people employed in agriculture recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.01 million people in 1996.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for number of people employed in agriculture?
- Sri Lanka ranks 50th out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
- Is number of people employed in agriculture rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is down 8.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates, via World Bank (2026) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Number of people employed in agriculture. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Number of people working in agriculture, including hunting, forestry and fishing.