Employment in Southern Africa
Southern Africa: Employment was 20,937 in 2025. β² Rising
Latest (2025)
20,937
Change on year
up 1.3%
Rank
75th
of 87 groups
All-time high
20,937
in 2025
All-time low
15,512
in 2000
Years of data
26
2000β2025
Employment in Southern Africa, 2000β2025
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
Southern Africa recorded 20,937 for employment in 2025. That is the highest value across all 26 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.3% on the previous year and up 9.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment in Southern Africa peaked at 20,937 in 2025 and was at its lowest, 15,512, in 2000.
Southern Africa ranks 75th of 87 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 26 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 16,672 | 15,512 | 17,692 | 10 |
| 2010s | 18,400 | 16,767 | 19,626 | 10 |
| 2020s | 19,525 | 18,015 | 20,937 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Southern Africa
More work & labour data for Southern Africa
- Population - Est. & Proj. β Total Population - Both sexes 108,649 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. β Total Population - Male 52,126 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. β Total Population - Female 56,523 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. β Rural population 19,568 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. β Urban population 66,232 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. β Urban population, annual growth rate 0.9762 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. β Rural population, annual growth rate -0.9822 % change on previous year (2050)
- Manufacturing employment as a proportion of total employment - 13th 9.9% (2025)
- Unemployment rate, by sex and age - 13th ICLS 31.1% (2025)
- Level of national compliance with labour rights (freedom of) 1.11 score (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment in Southern Africa?
- Employment in Southern Africa was 20,937 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest employment recorded in Southern Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 20,937 in 2025.
- What is the lowest employment recorded in Southern Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 15,512 in 2000.
- How does Southern Africa rank for employment?
- Southern Africa ranks 75th out of 87 groups with data for 2025.
- Is employment rising or falling in Southern Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Southern Africa data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Employment (previous ILO definition - ICLS13). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV Β· JSON β 26 observations, free to reuse under ILO Terms of Use (attribution required).