Economy · Southern Africa
South Africa Female Labor Force Participation
Share of women ages 15+ that is economically active (ILO modelled estimate). Source: World Bank — World Development Indicators. Updated June 19, 2026.
Trend
History
| Period | Female Labor Force Participation |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 49.9% |
| 2024 | 49.8% |
| 2023 | 49.1% |
| 2022 | 47.1% |
| 2021 | 45.4% |
| 2020 | 44.1% |
| 2019 | 48.6% |
| 2018 | 48.5% |
| 2017 | 48.6% |
| 2016 | 47.7% |
| 2015 | 47.7% |
| 2014 | 46.5% |
Get this via API
The series above is served by the /v1/data endpoint. With a free key you get JSON for every country and indicator on this site.
curl "https://api.africa-api.com/v1/data?country_code=ZA&metric_key=female_labor_force_participation_pct" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $AFRICA_API_KEY"Female Labor Force Participation across Africa
Rank all 54 ->| Country | Female Labor Force Participation |
|---|---|
| Nigeria | 80.7% |
| Kenya | 63% |
| Egypt | 18.5% |
| Ghana | 55.3% |
| Ethiopia | 58.5% |
| Tanzania | 80.3% |
Frequently asked questions
What is South Africa's female labor force participation rate?
South Africa's female labor force participation rate is 49.9% as of 2025, according to World Bank — World Development Indicators.
What is the source for this figure?
The figure comes from World Bank — World Development Indicators and is republished by the Africa API with the retrieval date shown on this page.
How do I get South Africa Female Labor Force Participation data via API?
Call GET /v1/data?country_code=ZA&metric_key=female_labor_force_participation_pct with a free Africa API key to receive the full time series as JSON.
More South Africa economy data