Informal employment in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income

Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income: Informal employment was 242,947 in 2027. ▲ Rising

Latest (2027)
242,947
Change on year
up 2.6%
Rank
25th
of 87 groups
All-time high
242,947
in 2027
All-time low
135,408
in 2004
Years of data
24
2004–2027

Informal employment in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income, 2004–2027

050.0k100.0k150.0k200.0k250.0k2004201520272004: 135.4k2005: 138.9k2006: 142.6k2007: 146.2k2008: 149.8k2009: 152.9k2010: 155.4k2011: 158.8k2012: 162.3k2013: 167.0k2014: 170.4k2015: 174.3k2016: 178.5k2017: 182.4k2018: 186.0k2019: 190.1k2020: 192.3k2021: 201.7k2022: 210.4k2023: 219.4k2024: 225.3k2025: 230.8k2026: 236.8k2027: 242.9k

Source: International Labour Organization.

Analysis

The most recent figure for informal employment in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income is 242,947, measured in 2027. That is the highest value across all 24 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.6% on the previous year and up 33.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, informal employment in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income peaked at 242,947 in 2027 and was at its lowest, 135,408, in 2004.

Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income ranks 25th of 87 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.

Informal employment in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income, year by year

Annual values for Informal employment (ILO modelled estimates) in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income, 2004 to 2027.
Year Value Change
2004 135,408
2005 138,889 +2.6%
2006 142,621 +2.7%
2007 146,234 +2.5%
2008 149,794 +2.4%
2009 152,878 +2.1%
2010 155,433 +1.7%
2011 158,834 +2.2%
2012 162,324 +2.2%
2013 166,975 +2.9%
2014 170,413 +2.1%
2015 174,254 +2.3%
2016 178,549 +2.5%
2017 182,386 +2.1%
2018 185,987 +2.0%
2019 190,059 +2.2%
2020 192,327 +1.2%
2021 201,711 +4.9%
2022 210,420 +4.3%
2023 219,379 +4.3%
2024 225,309 +2.7%
2025 230,763 +2.4%
2026 236,815 +2.6%
2027 242,947 +2.6%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 144,304 135,408 152,878 6
2010s 172,521 155,433 190,059 10
2020s 219,959 192,327 242,947 8

More work & labour data for Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income

All data for Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income →

Frequently asked questions

What is informal employment in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income?
Informal employment in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income was 242,947 in 2027, according to International Labour Organization.
What is the highest informal employment recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income?
The highest recorded value was 242,947 in 2027.
What is the lowest informal employment recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income?
The lowest recorded value was 135,408 in 2004.
How does Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income rank for informal employment?
Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income ranks 25th out of 87 groups with data for 2027.
Is informal employment rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income?
Over the last ten years it is up 33.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income data come from?
The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Informal employment (ILO modelled estimates). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under ILO Terms of Use (attribution required).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Informal employment in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income. Statizoid, drawing on International Labour Organization. Retrieved 03 September 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/informal-employment-ilo-modelled-estimates/sub-saharan-africa-lower-middle-income/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under ILO Terms of Use (attribution required); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/informal-employment-ilo-modelled-estimates/sub-saharan-africa-lower-middle-income/">Informal employment in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lower-middle income</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Informal employment (ILO modelled estimates)
Source
International Labour Organization
Licence
ILO Terms of Use (attribution required)
Coverage
87 places, 2,088 data points, 2004–2027
Last refreshed

Imputed observations are not based on national data, are subject to high uncertainty and should not be used for country comparisons or rankings. This series is based on the 13th ICLS definitions. Informal employment comprises persons who in their main or secondary jobs were (a) own-account workers, employers and members of producers' cooperatives employed in their own informal sector enterprises; (b) own-account workers engaged in the production of goods exclusively for own final use by their household (e.g. subsistence farming); (c) contributing family workers, regardless of whether they work in formal or informal sector enterprises; or (d) employees holding informal jobs, whether employed by formal sector enterprises, informal sector enterprises, or as paid domestic workers by households. For more information, refer to the ILO Modelled Estimates (ILOEST) database description.