Share of workers in vulnerable employment in Namibia

Namibia: Share of workers in vulnerable employment was 29.9% in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)
29.9%
Change on year
down 1.0%
World rank
90th
of 186 countries
All-time high
39.6%
in 1991
All-time low
25.2%
in 2016
Years of data
35
1991–2025

Share of workers in vulnerable employment in Namibia, 1991–2025

0102030401991200820251991: 39.6 %1992: 39.5 %1993: 39.5 %1994: 39.4 %1995: 39.3 %1996: 39.1 %1997: 38.9 %1998: 38.6 %1999: 38.2 %2000: 37.7 %2001: 37.3 %2002: 36.8 %2003: 36.2 %2004: 35.6 %2005: 35 %2006: 34.4 %2007: 33.8 %2008: 33.3 %2009: 32.8 %2010: 32.4 %2011: 32.2 %2012: 31.9 %2013: 33 %2014: 30.3 %2015: 27.8 %2016: 25.2 %2017: 28.2 %2018: 31.2 %2019: 31.2 %2020: 31.4 %2021: 30.8 %2022: 30.7 %2023: 30.5 %2024: 30.2 %2025: 29.9 %

Source: International Labour Organization (ILOEST/ILOSTAT) and World Bank staff estimates (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

Namibia recorded 29.9% for share of workers in vulnerable employment in 2025.

That represents a change of down 1.0% on the previous year and up 7.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of workers in vulnerable employment in Namibia peaked at 39.6% in 1991 and was at its lowest, 25.2%, in 2016.

That places Namibia 90th out of 186 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 39.1% 38.2% 39.6% 9
2000s 35.3% 32.8% 37.7% 10
2010s 30.3% 25.2% 33.0% 10
2020s 30.6% 29.9% 31.4% 6

Countries ranked near Namibia

  1. 87 Jamaica 31.6% compare
  2. 88 El Salvador 30.8% compare
  3. 89 Djibouti 30.3% compare
  4. 91 Belize 29.8% compare
  5. 92 Gabon 29.8% compare
  6. 93 Kyrgyzstan 29.0% compare

See the full ranking of 186 places →

More work & labour data for Namibia

All data for Namibia →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of workers in vulnerable employment in Namibia?
Share of workers in vulnerable employment in Namibia was 29.9% in 2025, according to International Labour Organization (ILOEST/ILOSTAT) and World Bank staff estimates (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of workers in vulnerable employment recorded in Namibia?
The highest recorded value was 39.6% in 1991.
What is the lowest share of workers in vulnerable employment recorded in Namibia?
The lowest recorded value was 25.2% in 2016.
How does Namibia rank for share of workers in vulnerable employment?
Namibia ranks 90th out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
Is share of workers in vulnerable employment rising or falling in Namibia?
Over the last ten years it is up 7.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Namibia data come from?
The figures come from International Labour Organization (ILOEST/ILOSTAT) and World Bank staff estimates (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of workers in vulnerable employment. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

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About this data

Indicator
Share of workers in vulnerable employment
Unit
%
Source
International Labour Organization (ILOEST/ILOSTAT) and World Bank staff estimates (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
186 places, 6,496 data points, 1991–2025
Last refreshed

Share of employed population who are working as independent own-account workers (self-employed without staff), or contributing family workers (self-employed in a household business or farm).