Self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Nepal
Nepal: Self-employed, female (% of female employment) was 90.8% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Nepal, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
Nepal recorded 90.8% for self-employed, female (% of female employment) in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
The figure is down 0.3% on the previous year and down 2.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Nepal peaked at 96.5% in 1991 and was at its lowest, 90.8%, in 2025.
Nepal ranks 6th of 187 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Nepal, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 96.5% | — |
| 1992 | 96.4% | -0.1% |
| 1993 | 96.3% | -0.1% |
| 1994 | 96.2% | -0.1% |
| 1995 | 96.1% | -0.1% |
| 1996 | 96.0% | -0.1% |
| 1997 | 95.9% | -0.1% |
| 1998 | 95.8% | -0.1% |
| 1999 | 95.7% | -0.1% |
| 2000 | 95.5% | -0.1% |
| 2001 | 95.4% | -0.1% |
| 2002 | 95.3% | -0.1% |
| 2003 | 95.2% | -0.1% |
| 2004 | 95.1% | -0.1% |
| 2005 | 94.9% | -0.1% |
| 2006 | 94.8% | -0.2% |
| 2007 | 94.6% | -0.2% |
| 2008 | 94.4% | -0.2% |
| 2009 | 94.2% | -0.2% |
| 2010 | 94.0% | -0.2% |
| 2011 | 93.8% | -0.2% |
| 2012 | 93.6% | -0.3% |
| 2013 | 93.3% | -0.3% |
| 2014 | 93.1% | -0.3% |
| 2015 | 92.9% | -0.3% |
| 2016 | 92.6% | -0.3% |
| 2017 | 92.4% | -0.2% |
| 2018 | 92.2% | -0.2% |
| 2019 | 92.0% | -0.2% |
| 2020 | 91.8% | -0.2% |
| 2021 | 91.6% | -0.2% |
| 2022 | 91.5% | -0.1% |
| 2023 | 91.3% | -0.2% |
| 2024 | 91.1% | -0.2% |
| 2025 | 90.8% | -0.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 96.1% | 95.7% | 96.5% | 9 |
| 2000s | 94.9% | 94.2% | 95.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 93.0% | 92.0% | 94.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 91.3% | 90.8% | 91.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Nepal
- 3 Sierra Leone 94.8% compare
- 4 Afghanistan 93.5% compare
- 5 Mozambique 91.3% compare
- 7 Liberia 90.7% compare
- 8 Madagascar 90.6% compare
- 9 Burundi 90.6% compare
More work & labour data for Nepal
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.593 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.568 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.6174 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -0.8524 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 1.99 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 13,496 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 22,611 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 16,146 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 15,685 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 31,831 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Nepal?
- Self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Nepal was 90.8% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest self-employed, female (% of female employment) recorded in Nepal?
- The highest recorded value was 96.5% in 1991.
- What is the lowest self-employed, female (% of female employment) recorded in Nepal?
- The lowest recorded value was 90.8% in 2025.
- How does Nepal rank for self-employed, female (% of female employment)?
- Nepal ranks 6th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is self-employed, female (% of female employment) rising or falling in Nepal?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Nepal data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Self-employed, female (% of female employment) (modeled ILO estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Self-employed workers are those workers who, working on their own account or with one or a few partners or in cooperative, hold the type of jobs defined as a "self-employment jobs." i.e. jobs where the remuneration is directly dependent upon the profits derived from the goods and services produced. Self-employed workers include sub-categories of employers, own-account workers and members of producers' cooperatives and contributing family workers.