Female labor force participation rate by country

Share of the female working-age population (ages 15 and over) who are economically active (employed or unemployed).

Countries reporting
183
Highest
82.9%
Madagascar
Lowest
4.7%
Yemen
Median
52.9%
Years covered
36
1990–2025
Data points
6,682

What the numbers show

Female labor force participation rate is currently reported for 183 countries. The highest value is 82.9% in Madagascar; the lowest is 4.7% in Yemen.

The median across all reporting countries is 52.9%, and the mean is 50.9%.

The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 18.

Over the past decade 102 countries rose and 81 fell. The largest increase was in Saudi Arabia (up 55.2%), and the largest decrease in Afghanistan (down 73.4%).

Female labor force participation rate: full country ranking

#Country LatestYear 10-year changeTrend
1 Madagascar 82.9% 2025 down 0.4% flat
2 Solomon Islands 82.3% 2025 down 0.3% flat
3 Nigeria 80.7% 2025 up 6.5% flat
4 Tanzania 80.3% 2025 up 0.2% falling
5 Burundi 79.5% 2025 down 1.6% falling
6 North Korea 77.7% 2025 up 0.1% flat
7 Cambodia 77.4% 2025 up 5.4% flat
8 Mozambique 77.1% 2025 down 1.3% falling
9 Uganda 75.6% 2025 up 2.5% rising
10 Benin 75.2% 2025 up 4.4% rising
11 Bolivia 72.9% 2025 up 27.7% rising
12 Eritrea 72.8% 2025 down 0.7% flat
13 Niger 72.8% 2025 up 17.9% flat
14 Moldova 72.3% 2025 up 4.2% rising
15 Angola 72.2% 2025 down 2.3% flat
16 Liberia 72.0% 2025 up 0.1% flat
17 Bahamas 70.7% 2025 up 0.6% rising
18 South Sudan 70.4% 2023 down 2.5% flat
19 Iceland 70.0% 2025 down 3.8% flat
20 Vietnam 68.6% 2025 down 5.9% falling
21 New Zealand 66.1% 2025 up 5.1% rising
22 Congo 65.6% 2025 down 1.4% flat
23 Central African Republic 65.5% 2025 up 0.2% flat
24 Peru 65.0% 2025 down 3.9% rising
25 Burkina Faso 64.1% 2025 down 12.9% falling
26 Botswana 63.7% 2025 up 13.2% rising
27 Singapore 63.6% 2025 up 3.7% rising
28 Macao 63.1% 2025 down 4.6% rising
29 Kenya 63.0% 2025 down 11.7% falling
30 Jamaica 63.0% 2025 up 7.7% flat
31 Netherlands 62.7% 2025 up 3.2% rising
32 Kazakhstan 62.6% 2025 down 4.3% flat
33 Australia 62.5% 2025 up 5.7% rising
34 Israel 62.3% 2025 up 3.6% rising
35 Switzerland 62.2% 2025 down 0.2% rising
36 Zimbabwe 62.2% 2025 up 2.9% flat
37 Norway 62.1% 2025 down 1.8% rising
38 Saint Lucia 62.0% 2025 down 2.4% rising
39 Qatar 61.9% 2025 up 10.5% rising
40 Democratic Republic of Congo 61.8% 2025 up 0.0% falling
41 East Timor 61.7% 2025 up 0.6% falling
42 Laos 61.6% 2025 up 9.5% flat
43 Sweden 61.5% 2025 up 1.6% flat
44 Cyprus 61.2% 2025 up 3.6% rising
45 Barbados 61.0% 2025 down 1.1% flat
46 Estonia 61.0% 2025 up 9.4% rising
47 Denmark 60.8% 2025 up 7.0% flat
48 Azerbaijan 60.8% 2025 down 0.6% falling
49 Guinea-Bissau 60.3% 2025 up 7.4% rising
50 Canada 60.2% 2025 down 1.3% rising
52 Cote d'Ivoire 59.5% 2025 up 0.4% rising
53 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 59.2% 2025 up 8.2% rising
54 China 59.1% 2025 down 5.5% falling
55 Paraguay 59.0% 2025 up 7.6% rising
56 Thailand 59.0% 2025 down 3.4% falling
57 Albania 58.6% 2025 up 24.3% flat
58 Ethiopia 58.5% 2025 down 16.7% falling
59 Haiti 58.3% 2025 down 5.4% rising
60 Malawi 58.2% 2025 down 6.5% falling
61 Lithuania 57.7% 2025 up 6.0% flat
63 United Kingdom 57.3% 2025 up 1.1% rising
64 Rwanda 57.3% 2025 up 5.1% rising
65 Uruguay 57.3% 2025 up 1.7% rising
66 South Korea 56.8% 2025 up 8.4% rising
67 Belarus 56.8% 2025 down 3.2% rising
68 Bhutan 56.7% 2025 up 3.1% flat
69 Georgia 56.7% 2025 down 3.4% falling
70 Togo 56.6% 2025 up 1.8% flat
71 Cameroon 56.6% 2025 down 13.8% falling
72 Guam 56.5% 2025 up 0.3% falling
73 Finland 56.5% 2025 up 2.0% flat
74 Zambia 56.4% 2025 up 9.0% rising
75 United States 56.3% 2025 up 0.7% flat
76 Japan 55.9% 2025 up 13.1% rising
78 Germany 55.3% 2025 up 1.6% rising
79 Ghana 55.3% 2025 down 15.0% falling
80 Latvia 55.2% 2025 up 2.3% rising
81 Slovakia 55.1% 2025 up 6.2% flat
82 Austria 55.1% 2025 up 0.4% rising
83 Panama 54.9% 2025 up 6.7% rising
84 Namibia 54.9% 2025 down 2.5% rising
85 Portugal 54.6% 2025 up 1.7% rising
86 Russia 54.5% 2025 down 1.8% flat
87 Brunei 54.4% 2025 down 5.1% rising
88 Hungary 54.3% 2025 up 8.8% rising
89 Indonesia 53.7% 2025 up 5.8% rising
90 Dominican Republic 53.7% 2025 up 11.4% rising
91 Czechia 53.5% 2025 up 4.4% flat
92 Brazil 53.4% 2025 up 0.2% rising
93 Vanuatu 53.3% 2025 down 4.3% falling
94 United Arab Emirates 53.0% 2025 up 10.1% rising
95 Chile 52.9% 2025 up 5.0% rising
96 Mali 52.8% 2025 down 13.7% falling
97 Spain 52.8% 2025 up 0.4% rising
98 United States Virgin Islands 52.8% 2025 down 5.2% falling
99 Serbia 52.6% 2025 up 21.6% flat
100 Equatorial Guinea 52.6% 2025 down 1.8% flat
101 Argentina 52.5% 2025 up 10.5% rising
102 Ecuador 52.4% 2025 up 0.9% rising
103 Slovenia 52.3% 2025 up 0.0% flat
104 Hong Kong 51.8% 2025 down 4.4% rising
105 Malaysia 51.6% 2025 up 1.6% rising
106 Colombia 51.6% 2025 down 6.6% flat
107 Poland 51.6% 2025 up 4.2% flat
108 Sierra Leone 51.6% 2025 down 6.3% falling
109 France 51.5% 2025 up 1.0% rising
110 Mongolia 51.5% 2025 down 3.7% flat
111 Nicaragua 51.3% 2025 up 6.0% rising
112 Montenegro 51.2% 2025 up 11.1% rising
113 New Caledonia 51.1% 2025 down 11.6% falling
114 Armenia 51.1% 2025 down 5.1% falling
115 Papua New Guinea 50.8% 2025 up 4.2% rising
116 Philippines 50.5% 2025 up 3.7% flat
117 Cape Verde 50.5% 2025 down 2.6% rising
118 Bulgaria 50.4% 2025 up 3.4% rising
119 South Africa 49.9% 2025 up 4.5% rising
120 Belgium 49.8% 2025 up 3.6% rising
121 El Salvador 49.1% 2025 up 8.8% rising
122 Eswatini 48.5% 2025 up 3.6% rising
123 Lesotho 48.1% 2025 down 11.8% falling
124 Trinidad and Tobago 47.8% 2025 down 8.1% rising
125 Ukraine 47.7% 2021 down 7.3% falling
126 Comoros 47.6% 2025 up 37.0% rising
127 Mauritius 47.5% 2025 up 2.4% rising
128 Mexico 47.5% 2025 up 8.0% rising
129 Croatia 47.4% 2025 up 1.5% flat
130 Guyana 47.4% 2025 up 12.0% rising
131 Chad 47.3% 2025 down 6.3% falling
132 Kuwait 47.2% 2025 down 4.9% rising
133 French Polynesia 46.6% 2025 down 4.8% flat
134 Belize 46.5% 2025 down 3.7% rising
135 Costa Rica 46.0% 2025 down 8.1% rising
136 Gambia 45.5% 2025 up 2.2% flat
137 Suriname 44.9% 2025 up 1.2% rising
138 Greece 44.7% 2025 up 1.4% rising
139 Kyrgyzstan 44.1% 2025 down 7.0% falling
140 North Macedonia 42.7% 2025 up 1.0% flat
141 Guinea 42.6% 2025 down 9.6% falling
142 Tonga 42.3% 2025 down 1.7% flat
143 Bahrain 42.3% 2025 down 2.5% rising
144 Romania 41.8% 2025 down 1.6% flat
145 Gabon 41.6% 2025 up 0.4% rising
146 Uzbekistan 41.2% 2025 up 4.4% flat
147 Myanmar 40.9% 2025 down 19.4% falling
148 Italy 40.8% 2025 up 3.6% rising
149 Maldives 40.7% 2025 up 5.6% rising
150 Cuba 40.0% 2025 down 9.8% rising
151 Honduras 39.6% 2025 down 15.0% flat
152 Bosnia and Herzegovina 39.2% 2025 up 1.1% falling
153 Bangladesh 38.6% 2025 up 15.3% rising
154 Fiji 38.5% 2025 down 3.9% flat
155 Guatemala 38.3% 2025 down 0.3% falling
156 Turkmenistan 38.2% 2025 down 3.1% falling
157 Senegal 38.2% 2025 up 12.2% rising
158 Turkey 37.1% 2025 up 18.2% rising
159 Venezuela 37.1% 2025 down 23.1% falling
160 Puerto Rico 36.9% 2025 up 15.6% flat
161 Saudi Arabia 33.6% 2025 up 55.2% rising
162 Libya 33.0% 2025 down 3.3% rising
163 India 32.4% 2025 up 22.0% falling
164 Sri Lanka 31.0% 2025 down 12.3% falling
165 Samoa 30.7% 2025 down 25.8% falling
166 Oman 30.0% 2025 up 1.1% rising
167 Nepal 27.5% 2025 up 1.7% rising
168 Tunisia 26.5% 2025 up 1.6% rising
169 Mauritania 26.2% 2025 down 1.9% flat
170 Pakistan 24.0% 2025 up 0.3% rising
171 Sao Tome and Principe 22.7% 2025 down 0.1% rising
172 Lebanon 22.2% 2023 down 10.1% rising
173 Tajikistan 21.9% 2025 down 8.4% falling
174 Somalia 20.7% 2025 down 1.2% flat
175 Morocco 19.7% 2025 down 19.2% falling
176 Djibouti 19.4% 2025 up 8.9% rising
177 Palestine 18.9% 2022 up 17.1% rising
178 Egypt 18.5% 2025 down 19.1% falling
179 Jordan 16.0% 2025 up 17.9% rising
180 Sudan 14.5% 2022 down 46.5% falling
181 Algeria 14.1% 2025 down 7.3% rising
182 Iran 14.0% 2025 down 2.4% rising
183 Syria 12.7% 2025 down 0.0% falling
184 Iraq 10.9% 2025 down 22.9% rising
185 Afghanistan 5.1% 2025 down 73.4% falling
186 Yemen 4.7% 2025 down 10.4% falling

About this data

Indicator
Female labor force participation rate
Unit
%
Source
ILO Modelled Estimates, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
186 places, 6,682 data points, 1990–2025
Last refreshed

Share of the female working-age population (ages 15 and over) who are economically active (employed or unemployed).