Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in Cape Verde
Cape Verde: Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) was 24.8% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in Cape Verde, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
In 2025, unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in Cape Verde stood at 24.8%.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.2% on the previous year and down 6.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in Cape Verde peaked at 29.9% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 20.7%, in 2010.
That places Cape Verde 27th out of 187 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.
Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in Cape Verde, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 22.1% | — |
| 1992 | 22.1% | +0.3% |
| 1993 | 22.1% | -0.2% |
| 1994 | 21.8% | -1.6% |
| 1995 | 21.8% | +0.3% |
| 1996 | 21.9% | +0.3% |
| 1997 | 22.3% | +1.7% |
| 1998 | 22.5% | +0.8% |
| 1999 | 22.6% | +0.6% |
| 2000 | 22.6% | +0.1% |
| 2001 | 23.1% | +2.0% |
| 2002 | 23.4% | +1.5% |
| 2003 | 23.9% | +2.1% |
| 2004 | 23.8% | -0.3% |
| 2005 | 24.0% | +0.7% |
| 2006 | 24.1% | +0.5% |
| 2007 | 24.2% | +0.5% |
| 2008 | 24.5% | +1.2% |
| 2009 | 25.2% | +2.6% |
| 2010 | 20.7% | -17.9% |
| 2011 | 21.8% | +5.4% |
| 2012 | 22.8% | +4.6% |
| 2013 | 24.0% | +5.2% |
| 2014 | 25.3% | +5.6% |
| 2015 | 26.6% | +5.2% |
| 2016 | 27.9% | +4.7% |
| 2017 | 29.2% | +4.6% |
| 2018 | 24.5% | -16.1% |
| 2019 | 24.7% | +1.0% |
| 2020 | 29.9% | +21.2% |
| 2021 | 27.7% | -7.6% |
| 2022 | 25.1% | -9.4% |
| 2023 | 24.5% | -2.3% |
| 2024 | 24.6% | +0.1% |
| 2025 | 24.8% | +1.2% |
Cape Verde compared with similar countries
- Cape Verde's 24.8% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 14.4%, 1.7× the median. (53 countries reporting)
- Cape Verde's 24.8% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 9.0%, 2.8× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 22.1% | 21.8% | 22.6% | 9 |
| 2000s | 23.9% | 22.6% | 25.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 24.7% | 20.7% | 29.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 26.1% | 24.5% | 29.9% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Cape Verde
More work & labour data for Cape Verde
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 176.12 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 57.01 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 233.52 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 12.15 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 1.59 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 29,137 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 13,162 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 50.08 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 1.57 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate 1.53 % change on previous year (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in Cape Verde?
- Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in Cape Verde was 24.8% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) recorded in Cape Verde?
- The highest recorded value was 29.9% in 2020.
- What is the lowest unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) recorded in Cape Verde?
- The lowest recorded value was 20.7% in 2010.
- How does Cape Verde rank for unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24)?
- Cape Verde ranks 27th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) rising or falling in Cape Verde?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Cape Verde data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) (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
Youth unemployment refers to the share of the labor force ages 15-24 without work but available for and seeking employment.