Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Afghanistan
Afghanistan: Self-employed, total (% of total employment) was 83.4% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Afghanistan, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
Afghanistan recorded 83.4% for self-employed, total (% of total employment) in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Afghanistan peaked at 95.6% in 1995 and was at its lowest, 82.3%, in 2021.
That places Afghanistan 12th out of 187 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Afghanistan, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 95.4% | — |
| 1992 | 95.5% | +0.1% |
| 1993 | 95.5% | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 95.6% | +0.1% |
| 1995 | 95.6% | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 95.5% | -0.1% |
| 1997 | 95.4% | -0.2% |
| 1998 | 95.2% | -0.2% |
| 1999 | 95.0% | -0.2% |
| 2000 | 94.8% | -0.2% |
| 2001 | 94.7% | -0.0% |
| 2002 | 94.5% | -0.3% |
| 2003 | 94.2% | -0.3% |
| 2004 | 94.0% | -0.3% |
| 2005 | 93.6% | -0.4% |
| 2006 | 93.3% | -0.4% |
| 2007 | 92.8% | -0.5% |
| 2008 | 92.5% | -0.4% |
| 2009 | 91.3% | -1.2% |
| 2010 | 90.1% | -1.3% |
| 2011 | 89.1% | -1.2% |
| 2012 | 88.0% | -1.2% |
| 2013 | 87.1% | -1.0% |
| 2014 | 86.4% | -0.9% |
| 2015 | 85.6% | -0.9% |
| 2016 | 84.9% | -0.9% |
| 2017 | 83.9% | -1.1% |
| 2018 | 84.0% | +0.1% |
| 2019 | 84.0% | -0.0% |
| 2020 | 84.3% | +0.4% |
| 2021 | 82.3% | -2.4% |
| 2022 | 82.8% | +0.5% |
| 2023 | 83.1% | +0.4% |
| 2024 | 83.4% | +0.3% |
| 2025 | 83.4% | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 95.4% | 95.0% | 95.6% | 9 |
| 2000s | 93.6% | 91.3% | 94.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 86.3% | 83.9% | 90.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 83.2% | 82.3% | 84.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Afghanistan
- 9 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 85.1% compare
- 10 Burundi 84.9% compare
- 11 Ethiopia 84.3% compare
- 13 Burkina Faso 82.6% compare
- 14 South Sudan 82.5% compare
- 15 Guinea 81.9% compare
More work & labour data for Afghanistan
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual 0.4637 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth 0.4511 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth 0.4755 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -0.088 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 2.67 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 25,498 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 36,430 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 65,039 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 65,177 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 130,217 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Afghanistan?
- Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Afghanistan was 83.4% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest self-employed, total (% of total employment) recorded in Afghanistan?
- The highest recorded value was 95.6% in 1995.
- What is the lowest self-employed, total (% of total employment) recorded in Afghanistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 82.3% in 2021.
- How does Afghanistan rank for self-employed, total (% of total employment)?
- Afghanistan ranks 12th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is self-employed, total (% of total employment) rising or falling in Afghanistan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Afghanistan data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Self-employed, total (% of total 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.