Indicator

Female Labor Force Participation by African country

2025

Share of women ages 15+ that is economically active (ILO modelled estimate).

Africa, 202551 of 54 countries
58.4%population-weighted average
Highest in 2025Madagascar · 82.9%Lowest in 2025Algeria · 14.1%Reported in 202551 of 54 countries surveyed
Click a country to pin it — pinned countries are named on the map. Hatching means no record.
Western Sahara — no separate recordTanzania — 80.3%Democratic Republic of the Congo — 61.8%Somalia — 20.7%Kenya — 63.0%Sudan — no dataChad — 47.3%South Africa — 49.9%Lesotho — 48.1%Zimbabwe — 62.2%Botswana — 63.7%Namibia — 54.9%Senegal — 38.2%Mali — 52.8%Mauritania — 26.2%Benin — 75.2%Niger — 72.8%Nigeria — 80.7%Cameroon — 56.6%Togo — 56.6%Ghana — 55.3%Cote d'Ivoire — 59.5%Guinea — 42.6%Guinea-Bissau — 60.3%Liberia — 72.0%Sierra Leone — 51.6%Burkina Faso — 64.1%Central African Republic — 65.5%Republic of the Congo — 65.6%Gabon — 41.6%Equatorial Guinea — 52.6%Zambia — 56.4%Malawi — 58.2%Mozambique — 77.1%Eswatini — 48.5%Angola — 72.2%Burundi — 79.5%Madagascar — 82.9%Gambia — 45.5%Tunisia — 26.5%Algeria — 14.1%Eritrea — 72.8%Morocco — 19.7%Egypt — 18.5%Libya — 33.0%Ethiopia — 58.5%Djibouti — 19.4%Uganda — 75.6%Rwanda — 57.3%South Sudan — no dataNigeria 80.7%Nigeria 80.7%Ethiopia 58.5%Ethiopia 58.5%Kenya 63.0%Kenya 63.0%South Africa 49.9%South Africa 49.9%2025HIGHEST IN 2025Madagascar82.9%Nigeria80.7%Tanzania80.3%Burundi79.5%Mozambique77.1%LOWEST IN 2025Algeria14.1%Egypt18.5%Djibouti19.4%Morocco19.7%Somalia20.7%PINNEDEthiopia58.5%21 of 51Kenya63.0%16 of 51South Africa49.9%33 of 51OTHER ISLAND STATES · NOT DRAWNCabo Verdenot drawn50.5%Comorosnot drawn47.6%Mauritiusnot drawn47.5%Sao Tome and Principenot drawn22.7%Seychellesnot drawnno data% of labour force · quintiles of the observed range14.1%41.6%51.6%58.5%72%82.9%no record
20142025
World Bank · national statistics offices · the provider's own estimates where a country has not reportedCC BY 4.0
Countries

By region

Population-weighted, so a region’s figure is the share of its people, not the average of its countries.
Western Africa16 of 16 countries69.2%
Eastern Africa16 of 18 countries65.8%
Middle Africa9 of 9 countries61.4%
Southern Africa5 of 5 countries50.5%
Northern Africa5 of 6 countries18.7%
Africaall 54 countries · 51 with a 2025 figure58.4%

What to know before you quote this

Specific to this series. For how we treat data generally, see methods.
Three countries have no usable 2025 recordNot a low value — no figure within the window. Seychelles, South Sudan and Sudan are hatched on the map and blank in the table.
Certainty is judged year by yearA country can be Reported in one year and Modelled the next. The tag follows the year on the scrubber, so the 2025 assessment is not a verdict on the whole series.

About this data

Female Labor Force ParticipationShare of women ages 15+ that is economically active (ILO modelled estimate).
SourceWorld Bank, with processing by Africa API
Unit% of labour force
Last updated15 Oct 2026
Next expected updateOct 2027
Date range1990–2025
Coverage51 of 54 countries · 51 reported, 0 modelled, 3 with no usable figure

How the figure is made

ReportedA national statistics office or the original provider published the figure for that year directly. 51 countries did so for 2025 — the certainty shown on this page is that 2025 assessment, not a per-series one.ModelledNo direct figure that year. The provider’s own estimate, interpolation or projection stands in, and is marked as such wherever it appears.No dataNo usable figure within the window. Drawn hatched on the map and left blank in the table — not zero, and not filled in.

These three states are used the same way across every indicator on the site — how we treat certainty explains the full set and what we never do to a number.

Reuse and cite

Everything on this page is open under CC BY 4.0 — use it anywhere, including commercially, as long as Africa API and the original provider are credited. The provider’s own licence still applies to their data.

How to cite this page
Africa API (2026) — "Female Labor Force Participation". Data adapted from World Bank. Retrieved 18 Oct 2026 from africa-api.com/indicators/female-labor-force-participation
The request behind this view
GET /v1/data?metric_key=female_labor_force_participation_pct&year=2025&limit=100

Read next

The measures that explain this one.

Female Labor Force Participation: most recent figure per country, highest to lowest

52 countries · each with its own period

The figures at the top of the page compare every country in the same year. This list takes each country’s newest figure instead, whatever its period, so the order can differ.

#CountryFemale Labor Force ParticipationPeriod
1Madagascar82.9%2025
2Nigeria80.7%2025
3Tanzania80.3%2025
4Burundi79.5%2025
5Mozambique77.09%2025
6Uganda75.6%2025
7Benin75.2%2025
8Eritrea72.8%2025
9Niger72.8%2025
10Angola72.2%2025
11Liberia72%2025
12South Sudan70.4%2023
13Republic of the Congo65.6%2025
14Central African Republic65.5%2025
15Burkina Faso64.1%2025
16Botswana63.7%2025
17Kenya63%2025
18Zimbabwe62.2%2025
19Democratic Republic of the Congo61.8%2025
20Guinea-Bissau60.3%2025
21Cote d'Ivoire59.5%2025
22Ethiopia58.5%2025
23Malawi58.18%2025
24Rwanda57.3%2025
25Togo56.6%2025
26Cameroon56.6%2025
27Zambia56.4%2025
28Ghana55.3%2025
29Namibia54.9%2025
30Mali52.8%2025
31Equatorial Guinea52.6%2025
32Sierra Leone51.6%2025
33Cabo Verde50.47%2025
34South Africa49.9%2025
35Eswatini48.5%2025
36Lesotho48.1%2025
37Comoros47.6%2025
38Mauritius47.5%2025
39Chad47.3%2025
40Gambia45.5%2025
41Guinea42.6%2025
42Gabon41.6%2025
43Senegal38.2%2025
44Libya33%2025
45Tunisia26.5%2025
46Mauritania26.18%2025
47Sao Tome and Principe22.7%2025
48Somalia20.7%2025
49Morocco19.7%2025
50Djibouti19.4%2025
51Egypt18.5%2025
52Algeria14.1%2025
Which observations are included?
The ranking includes 52 of 54 countries with available observations for 2023 or later and within 2 years of the freshest result. Each figure shows its reporting period. Countries without an eligible observation are omitted.
Does a higher value mean a better result?
The ranking is sorted by value, from highest to lowest. The order does not rate a country's performance. Interpretation depends on the indicator and its definition.

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