Unemployment with advanced education in South Asia
South Asia: Unemployment with advanced education was 13.2% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Unemployment with advanced education in South Asia, 1994–2024
Source: Education and Mismatch Indicators database (EMI), International Labour Organization (ILO). Measured in % of total labor force with advanced education.
Analysis
South Asia recorded 13.2% for unemployment with advanced education in 2024.
That represents a change of up 1.8% on the previous year and up 63.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment with advanced education in South Asia peaked at 17.8% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 7.3%, in 2010.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 12 years of available data.
Unemployment with advanced education in South Asia, year by year
| Year | % of total labor force with advanced education | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 10.0% | — |
| 2000 | 10.3% | +3.1% |
| 2005 | 9.5% | -7.5% |
| 2010 | 7.3% | -23.0% |
| 2012 | 8.1% | +10.0% |
| 2018 | 16.4% | +103.3% |
| 2019 | 15.6% | -4.9% |
| 2020 | 17.8% | +13.8% |
| 2021 | 15.6% | -12.1% |
| 2022 | 13.9% | -11.0% |
| 2023 | 13.0% | -6.6% |
| 2024 | 13.2% | +1.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 10.0% | 10.0% | 10.0% | 1 |
| 2000s | 9.9% | 9.5% | 10.3% | 2 |
| 2010s | 11.9% | 7.3% | 16.4% | 4 |
| 2020s | 14.7% | 13.0% | 17.8% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Asia
More work & labour data for South Asia
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages) 33.0% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) 55.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) 19.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) 45.4% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) 33.0% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages) 35.5% (2025)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) 42.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15+) 77.4% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) 81.2% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages) 59.0% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is unemployment with advanced education in South Asia?
- Unemployment with advanced education in South Asia was 13.2% in 2024, according to Education and Mismatch Indicators database (EMI), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest unemployment with advanced education recorded in South Asia?
- The highest recorded value was 17.8% in 2020.
- What is the lowest unemployment with advanced education recorded in South Asia?
- The lowest recorded value was 7.3% in 2010.
- How does South Asia rank for unemployment with advanced education?
- South Asia ranks 4th out of 19 groups with data for 2024.
- Is unemployment with advanced education rising or falling in South Asia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 63.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Asia data come from?
- The figures come from Education and Mismatch Indicators database (EMI), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Unemployment with advanced education (% of total labor force with advanced education). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
The percentage of the labor force with an advanced level of education who are unemployed. Advanced education comprises short-cycle tertiary education, a bachelor’s degree or equivalent education level, a master’s degree or equivalent education level, or doctoral degree or equivalent education level according to the International Standard Classification of Education 2011 (ISCED 2011).