Labour share of GDP in Southern Africa
Southern Africa: Labour share of GDP was 50.9% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Labour share of GDP in Southern Africa, 2004–2025
Source: United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database. Measured in %.
Analysis
Southern Africa recorded 50.9% for labour share of gdp in 2025.
The figure is down 0.2% on the previous year and down 6.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, labour share of gdp in Southern Africa peaked at 55.2% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 48.9%, in 2007.
That places Southern Africa 18th out of 36 groups with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 22 years of available data.
Labour share of GDP in Southern Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 50.4% | — |
| 2005 | 50.0% | -0.8% |
| 2006 | 50.1% | +0.2% |
| 2007 | 48.9% | -2.4% |
| 2008 | 50.0% | +2.2% |
| 2009 | 50.6% | +1.2% |
| 2010 | 51.6% | +2.0% |
| 2011 | 52.2% | +1.2% |
| 2012 | 53.1% | +1.7% |
| 2013 | 53.7% | +1.1% |
| 2014 | 53.9% | +0.4% |
| 2015 | 54.7% | +1.5% |
| 2016 | 54.9% | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 55.1% | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 54.8% | -0.5% |
| 2019 | 55.2% | +0.7% |
| 2020 | 55.0% | -0.4% |
| 2021 | 52.6% | -4.4% |
| 2022 | 51.2% | -2.7% |
| 2023 | 51.1% | -0.2% |
| 2024 | 51.0% | -0.2% |
| 2025 | 50.9% | -0.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 50.0% | 48.9% | 50.6% | 6 |
| 2010s | 53.9% | 51.6% | 55.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 52.0% | 50.9% | 55.0% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Southern Africa
More economy & growth data for Southern Africa
- Gross Domestic Product, GDP in millions constant 2021 international $ 1.01 million (2027)
- Gross Domestic Product — Value US$ 437,021 million USD (2024)
- Gross Fixed Capital Formation — Value US$, 2015 prices 61,673 million USD (2024)
- Gross Domestic Product — Value US$ per capita 5,975 USD (2024)
- Gross Domestic Product — Value US$ per capita, 2015 prices 5,489 USD (2024)
- Gross Domestic Product — Value US$, 2015 prices 401,475 million USD (2024)
- Gross Domestic Product — Annual growth US$ 5 % (2024)
- Gross Domestic Product — Annual growth US$ per capita 3.65 % (2024)
- Gross Fixed Capital Formation — Annual growth US$ 2.74 % (2024)
- Gross Fixed Capital Formation — Share of GDP US$, 2015 prices 15.36 % (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is labour share of gdp in Southern Africa?
- Labour share of gdp in Southern Africa was 50.9% in 2025, according to United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database.
- What is the highest labour share of gdp recorded in Southern Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 55.2% in 2019.
- What is the lowest labour share of gdp recorded in Southern Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 48.9% in 2007.
- How does Southern Africa rank for labour share of gdp?
- Southern Africa ranks 18th out of 36 groups with data for 2025.
- Is labour share of gdp rising or falling in Southern Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Southern Africa data come from?
- The figures come from United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database, published as part of Labour share of GDP (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under UN SDG Global Database (open, attribution requested).