São Tomé and Principe's unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (modeled ILO estimate) was 9.28% in 2025, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is down 2.73 percentage points from 12.01% in 2015.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 9.28% | 2025 |
| Five years earlier | 9.67% | 2020 |
| Ten years earlier | 12.01% | 2015 |
| Highest | 24.09% | 2002 |
| Lowest | 8.81% | 2018 |
| Average since 2016 | 9.3% | 2016–2025 |
| First recorded | 17.36% | 1991 |
What the numbers say
In 2025, São Tomé and Principe's unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (modeled ILO estimate) rose 0.1 percentage points on 2024 (from 9.18% to 9.28%).
Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was −0.27 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 1.42 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 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 5.98 percentage points in 2001 and the biggest yearly fall was 1.83 percentage points in 2013. 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 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 6% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.
Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.
How it compares
In 2025, São Tomé and Principe had the 51st 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.
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| São Tomé and Principe | 9.28% | 2025 |
| World | 4.94% | 2025 |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | 6.25% | 2025 |
| Lower middle income | 4.94% | 2025 |
Closest to São Tomé and Principe in the 2025 ranking
- Chile — 48th of 182: 9.62%
- Zimbabwe — 49th of 182: 9.37%
- Equatorial Guinea — 50th of 182: 9.29%
- Bahamas, The — 52nd of 182: 9.16%
- Finland — 53rd of 182: 8.87%
- Uruguay — 54th of 182: 8.65%
What this measures
Unemployment refers to the share of the labor force that is without work but available for and seeking employment.
Limitations: The criteria for people considered to be seeking work, and the treatment of people temporarily laid off or seeking work for the first time, vary across countries. In many cases it is especially difficult to measure employment and unemployment in agriculture. The timing of a survey can maximize the effects of seasonal unemployment in agriculture. And informal sector employment is difficult to quantify where informal activities are not tracked.
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.
All 35 values
| Year | Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (modeled ILO estimate) |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 9.28 |
| 2024 | 9.18 |
| 2023 | 9.15 |
| 2022 | 9.09 |
| 2021 | 9.53 |
| 2020 | 9.67 |
| 2019 | 8.93 |
| 2018 | 8.81 |
| 2017 | 8.91 |
| 2016 | 10.44 |
| 2015 |
Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (modeled ILO estimate) in nearby economies
- Angola — 14.26% (2025)
- Benin — 1.38% (2025)
- Botswana — 27.88% (2025)
- Burkina Faso — 4.26% (2025)
- Burundi — 0.81% (2025)
- Cabo Verde — 11.39% (2025)
- Cameroon — 4.15% (2025)
- Central African Republic — 7% (2025)
- Chad
More social protection & labor data for São Tomé and Principe
- Net migration — -650 (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 19.81% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 22.71% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 21.24% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15-64) (modeled ILO estimate) — 22.76% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) (modeled ILO estimate) — 24.09% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15-64) (modeled ILO estimate)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is São Tomé and Principe's unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (modeled ILO estimate)?
- 9.28% in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 1991?
- It is down 8.08 percentage points from 17.36% in 1991. The highest value was 24.09% in 2002 and the lowest 8.81% in 2018.
- How does São Tomé and Principe rank?
- 51st highest of 182 economies with data for 2025.
- Is the latest change in unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (modeled ILO estimate) unusual for São Tomé and Principe?
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SL.UEM.TOTL.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.
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