Female labor force participation rate (Labour Force) in Brunei
Brunei: Female labor force participation rate (Labour Force) was 55.3% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Female labor force participation rate in Brunei, 1960–2024
Source: Labour Force Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Brunei recorded 55.3% for female labor force participation rate in 2024.
That represents a change of up 1.6% on the previous year and down 5.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, female labor force participation rate in Brunei peaked at 58.7% in 2014 and was at its lowest, 19.8%, in 1978.
That places Brunei 98th out of 194 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 17 years of available data.
Female labor force participation rate (Labour Force) in Brunei, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 20.1% | — |
| 1971 | 20.0% | -0.4% |
| 1978 | 19.8% | -0.8% |
| 1981 | 31.3% | +57.8% |
| 1986 | 38.7% | +23.7% |
| 1991 | 46.4% | +19.9% |
| 2001 | 56.4% | +21.5% |
| 2011 | 56.4% | -0.0% |
| 2014 | 58.7% | +4.0% |
| 2017 | 56.5% | -3.7% |
| 2018 | 57.3% | +1.4% |
| 2019 | 54.7% | -4.6% |
| 2020 | 55.1% | +0.9% |
| 2021 | 54.9% | -0.5% |
| 2022 | 52.9% | -3.7% |
| 2023 | 54.4% | +2.8% |
| 2024 | 55.3% | +1.6% |
Brunei compared with similar countries
- Brunei's 55.3% is below the median for high income countries, which is 57.2%, 97% of the median. (79 countries reporting)
- Brunei's 55.3% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 54.1%, 1.0× the median. (33 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Female labor force participation rate (Labour Force) in Brunei changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | +57.8% | 19.8% | 31.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 20.1% | 20.1% | 20.1% | 1 |
| 1970s | 19.9% | 19.8% | 20.0% | 2 |
| 1980s | 35.0% | 31.3% | 38.7% | 2 |
| 1990s | 46.4% | 46.4% | 46.4% | 1 |
| 2000s | 56.4% | 56.4% | 56.4% | 1 |
| 2010s | 56.7% | 54.7% | 58.7% | 5 |
| 2020s | 54.5% | 52.9% | 55.3% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Brunei
More work & labour data for Brunei
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 137.72 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 63.56 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 240.28 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 5.43 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 1.08 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 172,284 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 64,415 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 60.11 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 2.06 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate 0.5234 % change on previous year (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is female labor force participation rate in Brunei?
- Female labor force participation rate in Brunei was 55.3% in 2024, according to Labour Force Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest female labor force participation rate recorded in Brunei?
- The highest recorded value was 58.7% in 2014.
- What is the lowest female labor force participation rate recorded in Brunei?
- The lowest recorded value was 19.8% in 1978.
- How does Brunei rank for female labor force participation rate?
- Brunei ranks 98th out of 194 countries with data for 2024.
- Is female labor force participation rate rising or falling in Brunei?
- Over the last ten years it is down 5.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Brunei data come from?
- The figures come from Labour Force Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Female labor force participation rate. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 17 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of the female working-age population who are economically active (employed or unemployed). Figures refer to national estimates and may not be fully comparable across countries.