Informal employment in Egypt

Egypt: Informal employment was 22,421 in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
22,421
Change on year
up 5.2%
World rank
9th
of 81 countries
All-time high
22,421
in 2024
All-time low
12,730
in 2009
Years of data
11
2009–2024

Informal employment in Egypt, 2009–2024

05.0k10.0k15.0k20.0k2009201620242009: 12.7k2010: 13.7k2011: 13.7k2012: 13.2k2013: 13.8k2015: 14.8k2016: 15.7k2017: 16.6k2019: 17.5k2023: 21.3k2024: 22.4k

Source: International Labour Organization.

Analysis

The most recent figure for informal employment in Egypt is 22,421, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 11 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 5.2% on the previous year and up 62.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, informal employment in Egypt peaked at 22,421 in 2024 and was at its lowest, 12,730, in 2009.

That places Egypt 9th out of 81 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 11 years of available data.

Informal employment in Egypt, year by year

Annual values for Informal employment (previous ILO definition - ICLS13) in Egypt, 2009 to 2024.
Year Value Change
2009 12,730
2010 13,734 +7.9%
2011 13,710 -0.2%
2012 13,177 -3.9%
2013 13,812 +4.8%
2015 14,824 +7.3%
2016 15,672 +5.7%
2017 16,576 +5.8%
2019 17,503 +5.6%
2023 21,318 +21.8%
2024 22,421 +5.2%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 12,730 12,730 12,730 1
2010s 14,876 13,177 17,503 8
2020s 21,870 21,318 22,421 2

Countries ranked near Egypt

  1. 6 Brazil 36,489 compare
  2. 7 Mexico 34,409 compare
  3. 8 Thailand 25,292 compare
  4. 10 Myanmar 17,978 compare
  5. 11 Uganda 16,978 compare
  6. 12 Russian Federation 14,123 compare

See the full ranking of 81 places →

More work & labour data for Egypt

All data for Egypt →

Frequently asked questions

What is informal employment in Egypt?
Informal employment in Egypt was 22,421 in 2024, according to International Labour Organization.
What is the highest informal employment recorded in Egypt?
The highest recorded value was 22,421 in 2024.
What is the lowest informal employment recorded in Egypt?
The lowest recorded value was 12,730 in 2009.
How does Egypt rank for informal employment?
Egypt ranks 9th out of 81 countries with data for 2024.
Is informal employment rising or falling in Egypt?
Over the last ten years it is up 62.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Egypt data come from?
The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Informal employment (previous ILO definition - ICLS13). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Informal employment in Egypt. Statizoid, drawing on International Labour Organization. Retrieved 29 August 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/informal-employment-previous-ilo-definition-icls13/egypt-arab-rep/

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About this data

Indicator
Informal employment (previous ILO definition - ICLS13)
Source
International Labour Organization
Licence
ILO Terms of Use (attribution required)
Coverage
81 places, 1,202 data points, 1999–2026
Last refreshed

With the aim of promoting international comparability, statistics presented on ILOSTAT are based on standard international definitions wherever feasible and may differ from official national figures. This series is based on the 13th ICLS definitions. For time series comparability, it includes countries that have implemented the 19th ICLS standards, for which data are also available in the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database. This harmonized series for informal employment is derived using the same set of criteria across countries to improve comparability. The criteria used are based on employment status, institutional sector, destination of production, bookkeeping, registration, social security contribution, places of work and size. Data disaggregated by occupation are provided according to the latest version of the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO). Data may have been regrouped from the national classifications, which may not be strictly compatible with ISCO. For more information, refer to the Labour Force Statistics (LFS and STLFS) database description.