Share of female workers by sector in Afghanistan
Afghanistan: Share of female workers by sector was 74.62 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Share of female workers by sector in Afghanistan, 1991–2025
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, share of female workers by sector in Afghanistan stood at 74.62. That is the highest value across all 35 years on record.
The figure is up 1.0% on the previous year and up 59.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of female workers by sector in Afghanistan peaked at 74.62 in 2025 and was at its lowest, 46.58, in 2014.
Afghanistan ranks 5th of 186 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Share of female workers by sector in Afghanistan, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 66.85 | — |
| 1992 | 66.6 | -0.4% |
| 1993 | 66.73 | +0.2% |
| 1994 | 67.01 | +0.4% |
| 1995 | 65.84 | -1.7% |
| 1996 | 65.44 | -0.6% |
| 1997 | 65.05 | -0.6% |
| 1998 | 64.94 | -0.2% |
| 1999 | 64.84 | -0.2% |
| 2000 | 64.72 | -0.2% |
| 2001 | 67 | +3.5% |
| 2002 | 63.5 | -5.2% |
| 2003 | 62.84 | -1.0% |
| 2004 | 63.15 | +0.5% |
| 2005 | 61.02 | -3.4% |
| 2006 | 60.47 | -0.9% |
| 2007 | 57.65 | -4.7% |
| 2008 | 56.76 | -1.6% |
| 2009 | 53.27 | -6.2% |
| 2010 | 50.86 | -4.5% |
| 2011 | 51.83 | +1.9% |
| 2012 | 49.29 | -4.9% |
| 2013 | 48.22 | -2.2% |
| 2014 | 46.58 | -3.4% |
| 2015 | 46.92 | +0.7% |
| 2016 | 47.48 | +1.2% |
| 2017 | 47.71 | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 49.48 | +3.7% |
| 2019 | 51.28 | +3.6% |
| 2020 | 53.79 | +4.9% |
| 2021 | 74.48 | +38.5% |
| 2022 | 74.39 | -0.1% |
| 2023 | 73.42 | -1.3% |
| 2024 | 73.89 | +0.6% |
| 2025 | 74.62 | +1.0% |
Afghanistan compared with similar countries
- Afghanistan's 74.62 is above the median for low income countries, which is 60.94, 1.2× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Afghanistan's 74.62 is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 3.81, 19.6× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of female workers by sector in Afghanistan changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | +38.5% | 53.79 | 74.48 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 65.92 | 64.84 | 67.01 | 9 |
| 2000s | 61.04 | 53.27 | 67 | 10 |
| 2010s | 48.96 | 46.58 | 51.83 | 10 |
| 2020s | 70.77 | 53.79 | 74.62 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Afghanistan
More gender data for Afghanistan
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) 20,358 (2030)
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) (0-14), annual growth 1.64 % change on previous year (2030)
- Population 29,681 (2030)
- Working-age population (UN estimates and projections) 29,681 (2030)
- Population (UN estimates and projections), annual growth rate 3.43 % change on previous year (2030)
- Age population, age 00, female, interpolated 707,563 (2025)
- Age population, age 00, male, interpolated 739,025 (2025)
- Age population, age 01, female, interpolated 690,872 (2025)
- Age population, age 01, male, interpolated 720,642 (2025)
- Age population, age 02, female, interpolated 674,248 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of female workers by sector in Afghanistan?
- Share of female workers by sector in Afghanistan was 74.62 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of female workers by sector recorded in Afghanistan?
- The highest recorded value was 74.62 in 2025.
- What is the lowest share of female workers by sector recorded in Afghanistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 46.58 in 2014.
- How does Afghanistan rank for share of female workers by sector?
- Afghanistan ranks 5th out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of female workers by sector rising or falling in Afghanistan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 59.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Afghanistan data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Share of female workers by sector. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).