Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Suriname
Suriname: Self-employed, total (% of total employment) was 22.5% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Suriname, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
In 2025, self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Suriname stood at 22.5%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.3% on the previous year and down 1.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Suriname peaked at 23.7% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 16.6%, in 1995.
Suriname ranks 123rd of 186 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.
Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Suriname, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 19.5% | — |
| 1992 | 19.4% | -0.3% |
| 1993 | 19.2% | -1.0% |
| 1994 | 18.5% | -3.6% |
| 1995 | 16.6% | -10.2% |
| 1996 | 19.2% | +15.6% |
| 1997 | 20.7% | +7.5% |
| 1998 | 17.8% | -13.8% |
| 1999 | 18.2% | +2.3% |
| 2000 | 18.6% | +2.0% |
| 2001 | 18.9% | +1.9% |
| 2002 | 19.5% | +3.0% |
| 2003 | 19.8% | +1.5% |
| 2004 | 20.0% | +1.3% |
| 2005 | 20.2% | +0.9% |
| 2006 | 20.3% | +0.6% |
| 2007 | 20.4% | +0.5% |
| 2008 | 20.6% | +0.8% |
| 2009 | 20.8% | +0.9% |
| 2010 | 21.0% | +1.1% |
| 2011 | 21.2% | +1.0% |
| 2012 | 21.5% | +1.3% |
| 2013 | 21.8% | +1.6% |
| 2014 | 22.2% | +1.7% |
| 2015 | 22.8% | +2.7% |
| 2016 | 23.2% | +1.7% |
| 2017 | 23.4% | +0.9% |
| 2018 | 23.6% | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 23.7% | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 23.4% | -1.2% |
| 2021 | 22.8% | -2.5% |
| 2022 | 23.0% | +0.8% |
| 2023 | 22.9% | -0.1% |
| 2024 | 22.8% | -0.8% |
| 2025 | 22.5% | -1.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 18.8% | 16.6% | 20.7% | 9 |
| 2000s | 19.9% | 18.6% | 20.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 22.4% | 21.0% | 23.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 22.9% | 22.5% | 23.4% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Suriname
- 120 Chile 23.9% compare
- 121 Palestine, State of 23.8% compare
- 122 Republic of Korea 22.7% compare
- 124 Bosnia and Herzegovina 22.1% compare
- 125 Italy 21.1% compare
- 126 Ukraine 21.0% compare
More work & labour data for Suriname
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.3451 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.3213 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.368 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.2 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.4854 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 480.04 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 168.36 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 358.14 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 350.87 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 709 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Suriname?
- Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Suriname was 22.5% 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 Suriname?
- The highest recorded value was 23.7% in 2019.
- What is the lowest self-employed, total (% of total employment) recorded in Suriname?
- The lowest recorded value was 16.6% in 1995.
- How does Suriname rank for self-employed, total (% of total employment)?
- Suriname ranks 123rd out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
- Is self-employed, total (% of total employment) rising or falling in Suriname?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Suriname 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.
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.