Self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Nicaragua
Nicaragua: Self-employed, female (% of female employment) was 49.1% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Nicaragua, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
The most recent figure for self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Nicaragua is 49.1%, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.5% on the previous year and down 2.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Nicaragua peaked at 53.5% in 1991 and was at its lowest, 49.1%, in 2025.
Nicaragua ranks 64th of 187 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Nicaragua, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 53.5% | — |
| 1992 | 53.4% | -0.1% |
| 1993 | 53.3% | -0.3% |
| 1994 | 53.1% | -0.3% |
| 1995 | 53.0% | -0.3% |
| 1996 | 52.8% | -0.3% |
| 1997 | 52.7% | -0.3% |
| 1998 | 52.6% | -0.2% |
| 1999 | 52.4% | -0.3% |
| 2000 | 52.2% | -0.3% |
| 2001 | 52.0% | -0.4% |
| 2002 | 52.3% | +0.5% |
| 2003 | 52.6% | +0.7% |
| 2004 | 53.0% | +0.6% |
| 2005 | 53.2% | +0.4% |
| 2006 | 52.9% | -0.6% |
| 2007 | 52.5% | -0.6% |
| 2008 | 52.2% | -0.7% |
| 2009 | 52.0% | -0.4% |
| 2010 | 51.8% | -0.4% |
| 2011 | 51.5% | -0.6% |
| 2012 | 51.2% | -0.6% |
| 2013 | 50.9% | -0.5% |
| 2014 | 50.7% | -0.5% |
| 2015 | 50.4% | -0.6% |
| 2016 | 50.1% | -0.6% |
| 2017 | 49.8% | -0.6% |
| 2018 | 49.6% | -0.4% |
| 2019 | 49.4% | -0.3% |
| 2020 | 50.1% | +1.2% |
| 2021 | 49.6% | -0.9% |
| 2022 | 49.8% | +0.5% |
| 2023 | 49.6% | -0.6% |
| 2024 | 49.3% | -0.5% |
| 2025 | 49.1% | -0.5% |
Nicaragua compared with similar countries
- Nicaragua's 49.1% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 72.6%, 68% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Nicaragua's 49.1% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 30.5%, 1.6× the median. (31 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 53.0% | 52.4% | 53.5% | 9 |
| 2000s | 52.5% | 52.0% | 53.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 50.5% | 49.4% | 51.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 49.6% | 49.1% | 50.1% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Nicaragua
More work & labour data for Nicaragua
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual 1.36 % change on previous year (2024)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth 1.41 % change on previous year (2023)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth 1.36 % change on previous year (2023)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate 0.2248 % change on previous year (2023)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 1.45 % change on previous year (2023)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 3,954 1000 No (2023)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 2,653 1000 No (2023)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 3,468 1000 No (2023)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 3,356 1000 No (2023)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 6,916 1000 No (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Nicaragua?
- Self-employed, female (% of female employment) in Nicaragua was 49.1% 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 Nicaragua?
- The highest recorded value was 53.5% in 1991.
- What is the lowest self-employed, female (% of female employment) recorded in Nicaragua?
- The lowest recorded value was 49.1% in 2025.
- How does Nicaragua rank for self-employed, female (% of female employment)?
- Nicaragua ranks 64th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is self-employed, female (% of female employment) rising or falling in Nicaragua?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Nicaragua 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.
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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.