Informal employment in Western Asia

Western Asia: Informal employment was 13,357 in 2027. ▼ Falling

Latest (2027)
13,357
Change on year
down 0.1%
Rank
59th
of 87 groups
All-time high
14,593
in 2011
All-time low
12,788
in 2023
Years of data
24
2004–2027

Informal employment in Western Asia, 2004–2027

05.0k10.0k15.0k2004201520272004: 14.5k2005: 14.3k2006: 14.1k2007: 13.8k2008: 13.4k2009: 13.6k2010: 14.2k2011: 14.6k2012: 14.1k2013: 13.8k2014: 13.7k2015: 13.7k2016: 13.9k2017: 14.4k2018: 14.5k2019: 14.4k2020: 12.8k2021: 12.9k2022: 12.8k2023: 12.8k2024: 13.2k2025: 13.4k2026: 13.4k2027: 13.4k

Source: International Labour Organization.

Analysis

Western Asia recorded 13,357 for informal employment in 2027.

That represents a change of down 0.1% on the previous year and down 7.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, informal employment in Western Asia peaked at 14,593 in 2011 and was at its lowest, 12,788, in 2023.

That places Western Asia 59th out of 87 groups with data for 2027, putting it in the middle of the range.

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

Informal employment in Western Asia, year by year

Annual values for Informal employment (ILO modelled estimates) in Western Asia, 2004 to 2027.
Year Value Change
2004 14,490 —
2005 14,258 -1.6%
2006 14,124 -0.9%
2007 13,803 -2.3%
2008 13,412 -2.8%
2009 13,642 +1.7%
2010 14,180 +3.9%
2011 14,593 +2.9%
2012 14,101 -3.4%
2013 13,848 -1.8%
2014 13,652 -1.4%
2015 13,667 +0.1%
2016 13,923 +1.9%
2017 14,393 +3.4%
2018 14,498 +0.7%
2019 14,354 -1.0%
2020 12,799 -10.8%
2021 12,867 +0.5%
2022 12,835 -0.2%
2023 12,788 -0.4%
2024 13,213 +3.3%
2025 13,372 +1.2%
2026 13,367 -0.0%
2027 13,357 -0.1%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 13,955 13,412 14,490 6
2010s 14,121 13,652 14,593 10
2020s 13,075 12,788 13,372 8

More work & labour data for Western Asia

All data for Western Asia →

Frequently asked questions

What is informal employment in Western Asia?
Informal employment in Western Asia was 13,357 in 2027, according to International Labour Organization.
What is the highest informal employment recorded in Western Asia?
The highest recorded value was 14,593 in 2011.
What is the lowest informal employment recorded in Western Asia?
The lowest recorded value was 12,788 in 2023.
How does Western Asia rank for informal employment?
Western Asia ranks 59th out of 87 groups with data for 2027.
Is informal employment rising or falling in Western Asia?
Over the last ten years it is down 7.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Western Asia 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.

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Informal employment in Western Asia. Statizoid, drawing on International Labour Organization. Retrieved 26 September 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/informal-employment-ilo-modelled-estimates/western-asia/

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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.