Self-employed, male (% of male employment) in Arab World
Arab World: Self-employed, male (% of male employment) was 25.9% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Self-employed, male (% of male employment) in Arab World, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
Arab World recorded 25.9% for self-employed, male (% of male employment) in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
The figure is down 0.6% on the previous year and down 7.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, self-employed, male (% of male employment) in Arab World peaked at 37.2% in 1991 and was at its lowest, 25.9%, in 2025.
That places Arab World 38th out of 47 groups with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Self-employed, male (% of male employment) in Arab World, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 37.2% | — |
| 1992 | 36.9% | -0.8% |
| 1993 | 36.7% | -0.3% |
| 1994 | 36.4% | -1.0% |
| 1995 | 36.1% | -0.7% |
| 1996 | 35.6% | -1.6% |
| 1997 | 35.0% | -1.7% |
| 1998 | 34.9% | -0.1% |
| 1999 | 34.2% | -1.9% |
| 2000 | 34.3% | +0.1% |
| 2001 | 33.9% | -1.2% |
| 2002 | 33.9% | -0.1% |
| 2003 | 34.0% | +0.3% |
| 2004 | 33.8% | -0.5% |
| 2005 | 32.6% | -3.7% |
| 2006 | 31.7% | -2.5% |
| 2007 | 32.2% | +1.3% |
| 2008 | 31.0% | -3.5% |
| 2009 | 30.8% | -0.6% |
| 2010 | 30.3% | -1.8% |
| 2011 | 30.2% | -0.2% |
| 2012 | 29.4% | -2.9% |
| 2013 | 28.9% | -1.6% |
| 2014 | 28.9% | +0.1% |
| 2015 | 27.9% | -3.4% |
| 2016 | 27.8% | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 28.1% | +1.1% |
| 2018 | 28.2% | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 28.3% | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 28.1% | -0.5% |
| 2021 | 28.2% | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 27.8% | -1.4% |
| 2023 | 26.3% | -5.4% |
| 2024 | 26.1% | -0.8% |
| 2025 | 25.9% | -0.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 35.9% | 34.2% | 37.2% | 9 |
| 2000s | 32.8% | 30.8% | 34.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 28.8% | 27.8% | 30.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 27.1% | 25.9% | 28.2% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Arab World
- 35 Cameroon 62.5% compare
- 36 Azerbaijan 62.4% compare
- 37 Ghana 61.8% compare
- 38 Solomon Islands 61.0% compare
- 39 Bhutan 60.9% compare
- 40 Korea, Democratic People's Republic of 60.4% compare
- 41 Bangladesh 58.8% compare
More work & labour data for Arab World
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages) 48.7% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) 10.0% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) 39.3% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) 25.1% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages) 20.4% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) 73.8% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages) 19.0% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) 46.1% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15+) 70.6% (2025)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) 30.4% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is self-employed, male (% of male employment) in Arab World?
- Self-employed, male (% of male employment) in Arab World was 25.9% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest self-employed, male (% of male employment) recorded in Arab World?
- The highest recorded value was 37.2% in 1991.
- What is the lowest self-employed, male (% of male employment) recorded in Arab World?
- The lowest recorded value was 25.9% in 2025.
- How does Arab World rank for self-employed, male (% of male employment)?
- Arab World ranks 38th out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is self-employed, male (% of male employment) rising or falling in Arab World?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Arab World data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Self-employed, male (% of male 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.