Unemployment rate for young people in Afghanistan
Afghanistan: Unemployment rate for young people was 16.79 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
16.79
Change on year
down 2.6%
World rank
68th
of 186 countries
All-time high
17.54
in 2022
All-time low
10.04
in 2010
Years of data
35
1991–2025
Unemployment rate for young people in Afghanistan, 1991–2025
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
Afghanistan recorded 16.79 for unemployment rate for young people in 2025.
The figure is down 2.6% on the previous year and up 33.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment rate for young people in Afghanistan peaked at 17.54 in 2022 and was at its lowest, 10.04, in 2010.
That places Afghanistan 68th out of 186 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.
Unemployment rate for young people in Afghanistan, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 10.23 | — |
| 1992 | 10.21 | -0.1% |
| 1993 | 10.17 | -0.4% |
| 1994 | 10.15 | -0.2% |
| 1995 | 10.14 | -0.1% |
| 1996 | 10.16 | +0.1% |
| 1997 | 10.15 | -0.1% |
| 1998 | 10.17 | +0.1% |
| 1999 | 10.18 | +0.1% |
| 2000 | 10.2 | +0.2% |
| 2001 | 10.27 | +0.7% |
| 2002 | 10.18 | -0.9% |
| 2003 | 10.16 | -0.2% |
| 2004 | 10.11 | -0.5% |
| 2005 | 10.18 | +0.6% |
| 2006 | 10.18 | +0.1% |
| 2007 | 10.12 | -0.6% |
| 2008 | 10.14 | +0.2% |
| 2009 | 10.06 | -0.8% |
| 2010 | 10.04 | -0.1% |
| 2011 | 10.04 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 10.07 | +0.3% |
| 2013 | 10.1 | +0.3% |
| 2014 | 10.09 | -0.1% |
| 2015 | 12.53 | +24.2% |
| 2016 | 14.93 | +19.1% |
| 2017 | 17.31 | +15.9% |
| 2018 | 16.4 | -5.2% |
| 2019 | 15.52 | -5.4% |
| 2020 | 16.05 | +3.4% |
| 2021 | 16.01 | -0.2% |
| 2022 | 17.54 | +9.5% |
| 2023 | 17.49 | -0.3% |
| 2024 | 17.23 | -1.5% |
| 2025 | 16.79 | -2.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 10.17 | 10.14 | 10.23 | 9 |
| 2000s | 10.16 | 10.06 | 10.27 | 10 |
| 2010s | 12.71 | 10.04 | 17.31 | 10 |
| 2020s | 16.85 | 16.01 | 17.54 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Afghanistan
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 unemployment rate for young people in Afghanistan?
- Unemployment rate for young people in Afghanistan was 16.79 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest unemployment rate for young people recorded in Afghanistan?
- The highest recorded value was 17.54 in 2022.
- What is the lowest unemployment rate for young people recorded in Afghanistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.04 in 2010.
- How does Afghanistan rank for unemployment rate for young people?
- Afghanistan ranks 68th out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
- Is unemployment rate for young people rising or falling in Afghanistan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 33.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Afghanistan data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Unemployment rate for young people. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).