Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: Self-employed, total (% of total employment) was 88.8% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Sierra Leone, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
Sierra Leone recorded 88.8% for self-employed, total (% of total 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 0.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Sierra Leone peaked at 93.1% in 2001 and was at its lowest, 88.8%, in 2025.
That places Sierra Leone 3rd out of 186 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 Sierra Leone, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 91.8% | — |
| 1992 | 92.1% | +0.4% |
| 1993 | 92.3% | +0.2% |
| 1994 | 92.5% | +0.2% |
| 1995 | 92.7% | +0.2% |
| 1996 | 92.8% | +0.1% |
| 1997 | 93.0% | +0.2% |
| 1998 | 93.0% | +0.1% |
| 1999 | 93.1% | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 93.0% | -0.1% |
| 2001 | 93.1% | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 92.9% | -0.2% |
| 2003 | 92.6% | -0.3% |
| 2004 | 92.3% | -0.4% |
| 2005 | 92.0% | -0.3% |
| 2006 | 91.7% | -0.3% |
| 2007 | 91.4% | -0.3% |
| 2008 | 91.1% | -0.3% |
| 2009 | 90.9% | -0.2% |
| 2010 | 90.7% | -0.3% |
| 2011 | 90.5% | -0.2% |
| 2012 | 90.1% | -0.4% |
| 2013 | 89.5% | -0.6% |
| 2014 | 89.1% | -0.5% |
| 2015 | 89.2% | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 89.1% | -0.1% |
| 2017 | 89.1% | -0.0% |
| 2018 | 89.0% | -0.1% |
| 2019 | 88.9% | -0.1% |
| 2020 | 90.1% | +1.4% |
| 2021 | 89.7% | -0.5% |
| 2022 | 89.5% | -0.2% |
| 2023 | 89.3% | -0.3% |
| 2024 | 89.0% | -0.2% |
| 2025 | 88.8% | -0.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 92.6% | 91.8% | 93.1% | 9 |
| 2000s | 92.1% | 90.9% | 93.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 89.5% | 88.9% | 90.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 89.4% | 88.8% | 90.1% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sierra Leone
- 1 Chad 91.6% compare
- 2 Niger 89.5% compare
- 4 Madagascar 88.3% compare
- 5 Nigeria 86.2% compare
- 6 Central African Republic 85.4% compare
More work & labour data for Sierra Leone
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.1141 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.1389 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.091 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -0.2881 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 2.17 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 7,725 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 5,247 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 8,103 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 7,832 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 15,934 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Sierra Leone?
- Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Sierra Leone was 88.8% 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 Sierra Leone?
- The highest recorded value was 93.1% in 2001.
- What is the lowest self-employed, total (% of total employment) recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The lowest recorded value was 88.8% in 2025.
- How does Sierra Leone rank for self-employed, total (% of total employment)?
- Sierra Leone ranks 3rd out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
- Is self-employed, total (% of total employment) rising or falling in Sierra Leone?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sierra Leone 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.