Zimbabwe: Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (national estimate)

Key figures

Since 1982 it is down 1.73 percentage points from 11.1% in 1982. The World Bank has no value for 29 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

How it compares

In 2025, Zimbabwe had the 12th highest value of the 83 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 Zimbabwe in the 2025 ranking

• Panama — 9th of 83: 10.36%
• Pakistan — 10th of 83: 9.99%
• Chile — 11th of 83: 9.56%
• Finland — 13th of 83: 9.03%
• Uruguay — 14th of 83: 8.86%
• Sweden — 15th of 83: 8.71%

What this measures

Unemployment refers to the share of the labor force that is without work but available for and seeking employment. Definitions of labor force and unemployment differ by country.

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 15 values

Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (national estimate) in nearby economies

• Angola — 10.6% (2025)
• Botswana — 26.4% (2024)
• Burkina Faso — 8.1% (2025)
• Ghana — 3.24% (2025)
• Malawi — 18% (2024)
• Mali — 6.84% (2024)
• Mauritius — 8.13% (2024)
• Namibia — 37.59% (2023)
• Nigeria — 4.23% (2024)

More social protection & labor data for Zimbabwe

• Net migration — -54,555 (2025)
• Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of origin — 6,632 (2025)
• Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asylum — 8,570 (2025)
• Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 43.06% (2025)
• Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 53.32% (2025)
• Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 48.17% (2025)
• Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15-64) (modeled ILO estimate) — 62.93% (2025)
• Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) (modeled ILO estimate)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Zimbabwe's unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (national estimate)?

9.37% in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1982?

It is down 1.73 percentage points from 11.1% in 1982. The highest value was 12.6% in 2024 and the lowest 2.99% in 1994.

How does Zimbabwe rank?

12th highest of 83 economies with data for 2025.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, 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.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SL.UEM.TOTL.FE.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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