Malawi: Employment in industry, female (% of female employment) (modeled ILO estimate)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2025, Malawi's employment in industry, female (% of female employment) (modeled ILO estimate) rose 0 percentage points on 2024 (from 4.6% to 4.6%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was −0.03 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.05 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.7 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 0.01 percentage points in 2018 and the biggest yearly fall was 0.26 percentage points in 2021. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2016 to 2025 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.04 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 75% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2025, Malawi had the 161st highest value of the 182 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Malawi in the 2025 ranking

• Haiti — 157th of 182: 4.78%
• French Polynesia — 158th of 182: 4.7%
• Libya — 159th of 182: 4.6%
• Equatorial Guinea — 161st of 182: 4.51%
• Kenya — 162nd of 182: 4.51%
• Congo, Dem. Rep. — 163rd of 182: 4.33%

What this measures

Employment is defined as persons of working age who were engaged in any activity to produce goods or provide services for pay or profit, whether at work during the reference period or not at work due to temporary absence from a job, or to working-time arrangement. The industry sector consists of mining and quarrying, manufacturing, construction, and public utilities (electricity, gas, and water), in accordance with divisions 2-5 (ISIC 2) or categories C-F (ISIC 3) or categories B-F (ISIC 4).

Limitations: There are many differences in how countries define and measure employment status, particularly members of the armed forces, self-employed workers, and unpaid family workers. Where members of the armed forces are included, they are allocated to the service sector, causing that sector to be somewhat overstated relative to the service sector in economies where they are excluded. Where data are obtained from establishment surveys, data cover only employees; thus self-employed and unpaid family workers are excluded. In such cases the employment share of the agricultural sector is severely underreported.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 35 values

Employment in industry, female (% of female employment) (modeled ILO estimate) in nearby economies

• Angola — 1.7% (2025)
• Benin — 19.24% (2025)
• Botswana — 8.75% (2025)
• Burkina Faso — 14.42% (2025)
• Burundi — 0.55% (2025)
• Cabo Verde — 11.26% (2025)
• Cameroon — 12.04% (2025)
• Central African Republic — 12.12% (2025)

More social protection & labor data for Malawi

• Net migration — -5,628 (2025)
• Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of origin — 551 (2025)
• Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asylum — 35,241 (2025)
• Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 43.7% (2025)
• Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 48.77% (2025)
• Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 46.21% (2025)
• Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15-64) (modeled ILO estimate) — 58.96% (2025)
• Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) (modeled ILO estimate)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Malawi's employment in industry, female (% of female employment) (modeled ILO estimate)?

4.6% in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1991?

It is down 1.28 percentage points from 5.89% in 1991. The highest value was 5.89% in 1991 and the lowest 4.58% in 2022.

How does Malawi rank?

161st highest of 182 economies with data for 2025.

Is the latest change in employment in industry, female (% of female employment) (modeled ILO estimate) unusual for Malawi?

In 2025, Malawi's employment in industry, female (% of female employment) (modeled ILO estimate) rose 0 percentage points on 2024 (from 4.6% to 4.6%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was −0.03 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.05 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.7 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SL.IND.EMPL.FE.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), uri: https://ilostat.ilo.org/data/bulk/, publisher: ILOSTAT, type: external database, date accessed: January 17, 2026 Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

Want to ask your own questions of data like this? Try AnalyzeIt: upload a file or ask about public data in plain words, and every figure comes with its working.