Share of employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition) in Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe: Share of employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition) was 58.48 in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
58.48
Change on year
down 9.8%
World rank
5th
of 46 countries
All-time high
70.51
in 2021
All-time low
58.48
in 2024
Years of data
5
2019–2024

Share of employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition) in Zimbabwe, 2019–2024

0204060802019202120242019: 70.42021: 70.52022: 67.82023: 64.82024: 58.5

Source: International Labour Organization.

Analysis

In 2024, share of employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition) in Zimbabwe stood at 58.48. That is the lowest value across all 5 years on record.

The figure is down 9.8% on the previous year and down 16.9% over ten years.

That places Zimbabwe 5th out of 46 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.

Share of employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition) in Zimbabwe, year by year

Annual values for Share of employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition - ICLS19) (15+) in Zimbabwe, 2019 to 2024.
Year Value Change
2019 70.37
2021 70.51 +0.2%
2022 67.84 -3.8%
2023 64.85 -4.4%
2024 58.48 -9.8%

Zimbabwe compared with similar countries

  • Zimbabwe's 58.48 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 60.75, 96% of the median. (5 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 70.37 70.37 70.37 1
2020s 65.42 58.48 70.51 4

Countries ranked near Zimbabwe

  1. 2 Rwanda 78.9 compare
  2. 3 Zambia 60.75 compare
  3. 4 Viet Nam 59.18 compare
  4. 6 El Salvador 52.05 compare
  5. 7 Panama 45.01 compare
  6. 8 Botswana 40.42 compare

See the full ranking of 46 places →

More work & labour data for Zimbabwe

All data for Zimbabwe →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition) in Zimbabwe?
Share of employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition) in Zimbabwe was 58.48 in 2024, according to International Labour Organization.
What is the highest share of employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition) recorded in Zimbabwe?
The highest recorded value was 70.51 in 2021.
What is the lowest share of employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition) recorded in Zimbabwe?
The lowest recorded value was 58.48 in 2024.
How does Zimbabwe rank for share of employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition)?
Zimbabwe ranks 5th out of 46 countries with data for 2024.
Is share of employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition) rising or falling in Zimbabwe?
Over the last ten years it is down 16.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Zimbabwe data come from?
The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Share of employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition - ICLS19) (15+). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 5 observations, free to reuse under ILO Terms of Use (attribution required).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Share of employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition) in Zimbabwe. Statizoid, drawing on International Labour Organization. Retrieved 14 September 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-employment-outside-the-formal-sector-current-ilo-definition-icls19-15/zimbabwe/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under ILO Terms of Use (attribution required); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-employment-outside-the-formal-sector-current-ilo-definition-icls19-15/zimbabwe/">Share of employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition) in Zimbabwe</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Share of employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition - ICLS19) (15+)
Source
International Labour Organization
Licence
ILO Terms of Use (attribution required)
Coverage
46 places, 456 data points, 2014–2025
Last refreshed

With the aim of promoting international comparability, statistics presented on ILOSTAT are based on standard international definitions wherever feasible and may differ from official national figures. This series includes only countries for which the 19th ICLS definitions are applied. This harmonized series for employment outside the formal sector is derived using the same set of criteria across countries to improve comparability. The criteria used are based on employment status, institutional sector, destination of production, bookkeeping, registration, social security contribution, places of work and size. For more information, refer to the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database description.