Labour income distribution (ILO modelled estimates) in Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa: Labour income distribution (ILO modelled estimates) was 0.102 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Labour income distribution (ILO modelled estimates) in Sub-Saharan Africa, 2004–2025
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
Sub-Saharan Africa recorded 0.102 for labour income distribution (ilo modelled estimates) in 2025. That is the highest value across all 22 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.0% on the previous year and up 34.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, labour income distribution (ilo modelled estimates) in Sub-Saharan Africa peaked at 0.102 in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0.044, in 2004.
Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 84th of 87 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 22 years of available data.
Labour income distribution (ILO modelled estimates) in Sub-Saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 0.044 | — |
| 2005 | 0.046 | +4.5% |
| 2006 | 0.048 | +4.3% |
| 2007 | 0.051 | +6.2% |
| 2008 | 0.053 | +3.9% |
| 2009 | 0.055 | +3.8% |
| 2010 | 0.058 | +5.5% |
| 2011 | 0.062 | +6.9% |
| 2012 | 0.066 | +6.5% |
| 2013 | 0.068 | +3.0% |
| 2014 | 0.071 | +4.4% |
| 2015 | 0.076 | +7.0% |
| 2016 | 0.08 | +5.3% |
| 2017 | 0.079 | -1.3% |
| 2018 | 0.08 | +1.3% |
| 2019 | 0.081 | +1.3% |
| 2020 | 0.073 | -9.9% |
| 2021 | 0.085 | +16.4% |
| 2022 | 0.09 | +5.9% |
| 2023 | 0.096 | +6.7% |
| 2024 | 0.099 | +3.1% |
| 2025 | 0.102 | +3.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 0.0495 | 0.044 | 0.055 | 6 |
| 2010s | 0.0721 | 0.058 | 0.081 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.0908 | 0.073 | 0.102 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa
- 81 Chile 1.28 compare
- 82 Brunei Darussalam 1.27 compare
- 83 Hong Kong, China 1.24 compare
- 84 Chinese Taipei 1.23 compare
- 85 Guam 1.23 compare
- 86 Bhutan 1.21 compare
- 87 Costa Rica 1.21 compare
More work & labour data for Sub-Saharan Africa
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 70.23 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 564,978 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 239,462 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 5.73 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate 2.92 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 1.5 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 11,723 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 3.04 % change on previous year (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 66.21 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 4,279 (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is labour income distribution (ilo modelled estimates) in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Labour income distribution (ilo modelled estimates) in Sub-Saharan Africa was 0.102 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest labour income distribution (ilo modelled estimates) recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 0.102 in 2025.
- What is the lowest labour income distribution (ilo modelled estimates) recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.044 in 2004.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa rank for labour income distribution (ilo modelled estimates)?
- Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 84th out of 87 groups with data for 2025.
- Is labour income distribution (ilo modelled estimates) rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 34.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Labour income distribution (ILO modelled estimates) (Decile 1). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under ILO Terms of Use (attribution required).
About this data
Imputed observations are not based on national data, are subject to high uncertainty and should not be used for country comparisons or rankings. This indicator shows in percentage the share of total labour income that accrues to each decile. Labour income includes the compensation of employees and part of the income of the self-employed. Self-employed workers earn from both their work and capital ownership. Total compensation of employees refers to the remuneration, in cash or in kind, payable by an enterprise to an employee in return for work done by the latter during the accounting period. The labour income of self-employed is imputed on the basis of a statistical analysis of employees of similar characteristics. For more information, refer to the ILO Modelled Estimates (ILOEST) database description.