Suriname: Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) (national estimate)

Key figures

Over five years it is down 5.83 percentage points from 61.95% in 2011. Since 1964 it is up 14.79 percentage points from 41.32% in 1964. The World Bank has no value for 35 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

What the numbers say

In 2016, Suriname's labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) (national estimate) fell 3.84 percentage points on 2015 (from 59.96% to 56.12%).

Across the 10 yearly changes before that (1990 to 2015), the average change was +0.27 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 3.57 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.2 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 9.71 percentage points in 1990 and the biggest yearly fall was 3.84 percentage points in 2016. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2009 to 2016 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.62 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 48% of the movement over 8 observed years.

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

How it compares

See how every economy compares in the full ranking.

Closest to Suriname in the 2016 ranking

• Isle of Man — 1st of 4: 84.18%
• Kuwait — 2nd of 4: 73.84%
• Macao SAR, China — 3rd of 4: 72.3%

What this measures

Labor force participation rate is the proportion of the population ages 15 and older that is economically active: all people who supply labor for the production of goods and services during a specified period.

Limitations: Data on the labor force are compiled by the ILO from labor force surveys, censuses, and establishment censuses and surveys. For some countries a combination of these sources is used. Labor force surveys are the most comprehensive source for internationally comparable labor force data. They can cover all non-institutionalized civilians, all branches and sectors of the economy, and all categories of workers, including people holding multiple jobs. By contrast, labor force data from population censuses are often based on a limited number of questions on the economic characteristics of individuals, with little scope to probe.

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

All 18 values

Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) (national estimate) in nearby economies

• Argentina — 62.22% (2025)
• Bahamas, The — 51.03% (2024)
• Barbados — 62.78% (2024)
• Belize — 69.73% (2019)
• Bolivia — 80.07% (2025)
• Brazil — 63.2% (2025)
• Cayman Islands — 82.8% (2015)
• Chile

More social protection & labor data for Suriname

• Net migration — -967 (2025)
• Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of origin — 56 (2025)
• Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 27.67% (2025)
• Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 42.36% (2025)
• Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 35.11% (2025)
• Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15-64) (modeled ILO estimate) — 51.01% (2025)
• Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) (modeled ILO estimate) — 69.04% (2025)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Suriname's labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) (national estimate)?

56.12% in 2016, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1964?

It is up 14.79 percentage points from 41.32% in 1964. The highest value was 62.92% in 2014 and the lowest 37.31% in 1980.

Is the latest change in labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) (national estimate) unusual for Suriname?

In 2016, Suriname's labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) (national estimate) fell 3.84 percentage points on 2015 (from 59.96% to 56.12%). Across the 10 yearly changes before that (1990 to 2015), the average change was +0.27 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 3.57 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.2 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SL.TLF.CACT.NE.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO), uri: https://ilostat.ilo.org/data/bulk/, publisher: ILOSTAT, type: external database, date accessed: September 28, 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.

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