Labour force participation in Malawi
The ILO estimates that 62.6% of people aged 15 and over in Malawi were in the labour force in 2025. The value for 2025 is the lowest in the series, which starts in 1991.
Malawi, 2025
62.6%
Change from 2024
−0.3percentage points
World, 2025
60.8%
Position in 2025
85th of 181
Labour force participation in Malawi over time
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Malawi
World
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The chart loads when you scroll to it. The table below shows the same data.
The chart shows a calculation from the published values. The table below keeps the published values.
% of working-age population aged 15 and over. Source: ILO, ILOSTAT (ILO Modelled Estimates). Gaps mean no published value; points are not joined across missing years. Dashed lines are projections.
| Period | Malawi | World |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 62.6% | 60.8% |
| 2024 | 62.9% | 61.0% |
| 2023 | 63.0% | 61.0% |
| 2022 | 63.1% | 60.7% |
| 2021 | 62.9% | 60.4% |
| 2020 | 68.3% | 59.7% |
| 2019 | 63.3% | 61.0% |
| 2018 | 63.4% | 61.2% |
| 2017 | 63.5% | 61.3% |
| 2016 | 65.2% | 61.5% |
Flags: f Projection . A dash means no value was published.
In short
- That is a change of −0.3 percentage points from 62.9% in 2024.
- Since 2015, when it was 67.0%, the figure has changed by −4.4 percentage points.
- Among the 181 countries with data for 2025, Malawi has the 85th highest value.
- The figure for the world in 2025 was 60.8%.
More for Malawi
All statistics for Malawi
Women's labour force participation
58.2%
2025 · ILOSTAT
Employment-to-population ratio
59.4%
2025 · ILOSTAT
ILO estimate of the unemployment rate
5.1%
2025 · ILOSTAT
ILO estimate of youth unemployment
6.9%
2025 · ILOSTAT
Employment in agriculture
65.0%
2025 · World Bank
Employment in industry
7.3%
2025 · World Bank