Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) in Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa: Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) was 5.1% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) in Sub-Saharan Africa, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
Sub-Saharan Africa recorded 5.1% for unemployment, male (% of male labor force) in 2025.
That represents a change of up 1.9% on the previous year and down 6.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment, male (% of male labor force) in Sub-Saharan Africa peaked at 6.6% in 1993 and was at its lowest, 5.0%, in 2024.
That places Sub-Saharan Africa 13th out of 47 groups with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) in Sub-Saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 6.5% | — |
| 1992 | 6.5% | +1.1% |
| 1993 | 6.6% | +0.9% |
| 1994 | 6.5% | -1.3% |
| 1995 | 6.3% | -3.2% |
| 1996 | 6.2% | -2.3% |
| 1997 | 6.1% | -1.3% |
| 1998 | 6.1% | -0.1% |
| 1999 | 6.2% | +1.2% |
| 2000 | 6.1% | -0.1% |
| 2001 | 6.0% | -1.7% |
| 2002 | 5.9% | -2.5% |
| 2003 | 5.8% | -2.0% |
| 2004 | 5.6% | -2.7% |
| 2005 | 5.5% | -1.8% |
| 2006 | 5.4% | -2.1% |
| 2007 | 5.4% | -0.8% |
| 2008 | 5.4% | -0.1% |
| 2009 | 5.4% | +1.1% |
| 2010 | 5.5% | +2.5% |
| 2011 | 5.5% | -1.0% |
| 2012 | 5.4% | -1.0% |
| 2013 | 5.3% | -3.2% |
| 2014 | 5.3% | +1.6% |
| 2015 | 5.5% | +3.0% |
| 2016 | 5.6% | +1.4% |
| 2017 | 5.7% | +2.4% |
| 2018 | 5.8% | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 5.9% | +2.4% |
| 2020 | 6.3% | +6.1% |
| 2021 | 6.2% | -0.7% |
| 2022 | 5.3% | -14.0% |
| 2023 | 5.1% | -4.1% |
| 2024 | 5.0% | -1.4% |
| 2025 | 5.1% | +1.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 6.3% | 6.1% | 6.6% | 9 |
| 2000s | 5.7% | 5.4% | 6.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.6% | 5.3% | 5.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.5% | 5.0% | 6.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa
More education data for Sub-Saharan Africa
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 5.14 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 81.43 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 196.80 million (2024)
- Population ages 0-14 40.4% (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 0.9738 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 56.4% (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1526 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is unemployment, male (% of male labor force) in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) in Sub-Saharan Africa was 5.1% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest unemployment, male (% of male labor force) recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 6.6% in 1993.
- What is the lowest unemployment, male (% of male labor force) recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.0% in 2024.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa rank for unemployment, male (% of male labor force)?
- Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 13th out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is unemployment, male (% of male labor force) rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) (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
Unemployment refers to the share of the labor force that is without work but available for and seeking employment.