Labor force — all countries

Labor force — Afghanistan

Labor force in Afghanistan in 2025 — 9,433,041 people. Ranked 57 in the world out of 182. Since 1990, the indicator has risen by 217.2%.

2025 9.43M people +3.15% vs 2024
World rank 57of 182
Period maximum 9.43M people2025
Period minimum 2.97M people1990

Trend over time

1990–2025 · people

Labor force — Afghanistan, 1990–202502.5M5M7.5M10M19901994199820022006201020142018202220251990: 2,974,181 people1991: 3,009,251 people1992: 3,248,953 people1993: 3,636,608 people1994: 3,930,551 people1995: 4,100,434 people1996: 4,239,207 people1997: 4,372,875 people1998: 4,509,602 people1999: 4,651,589 people2000: 4,684,205 people2001: 4,702,818 people2002: 4,947,295 people2003: 5,259,694 people2004: 5,459,174 people2005: 5,672,338 people2006: 5,937,185 people2007: 6,089,849 people2008: 6,273,854 people2009: 6,563,683 people2010: 6,823,542 people2011: 7,149,401 people2012: 7,518,518 people2013: 7,857,574 people2014: 8,229,616 people2015: 8,575,264 people2016: 8,883,595 people2017: 9,223,903 people2018: 9,215,046 people2019: 9,192,643 people2020: 9,060,510 people2021: 9,128,262 people2022: 8,617,545 people2023: 8,846,502 people2024: 9,145,340 people2025: 9,433,041 people
Change over the period: +6.46M (+217.16%) Average annual rate: 3.35 %

Comparison, 2025

How the value compares with the world and the groups this territory belongs to: Afghanistan

Afghanistan 9.43M people
World 3.74B people
South Asia 710M people
Southern Asia computed 834M people
Low-income countries computed 275M people
Labor force — Afghanistan, by year Afghanistan All countries CSV XLSX
Year people Change Change, %
2025 9.43M +287,701 +3.15%
2024 9.15M +298,838 +3.38%
2023 8.85M +228,957 +2.66%
2022 8.62M −510,717 −5.59%
2021 9.13M +67,752 +0.75%
2020 9.06M −132,133 −1.44%
2019 9.19M −22,403 −0.24%
2018 9.22M −8,857 −0.1%
2017 9.22M +340,308 +3.83%
2016 8.88M +308,331 +3.6%
2015 8.58M +345,648 +4.2%
2014 8.23M +372,042 +4.73%
2013 7.86M +339,056 +4.51%
2012 7.52M +369,117 +5.16%
2011 7.15M +325,859 +4.78%
2010 6.82M +259,859 +3.96%
2009 6.56M +289,829 +4.62%
2008 6.27M +184,005 +3.02%
2007 6.09M +152,664 +2.57%
2006 5.94M +264,847 +4.67%
2005 5.67M +213,164 +3.9%
2004 5.46M +199,480 +3.79%
2003 5.26M +312,399 +6.31%
2002 4.95M +244,477 +5.2%
2001 4.7M +18,613 +0.4%
2000 4.68M +32,616 +0.7%
1999 4.65M +141,987 +3.15%
1998 4.51M +136,727 +3.13%
1997 4.37M +133,668 +3.15%
1996 4.24M +138,773 +3.38%
1995 4.1M +169,883 +4.32%
1994 3.93M +293,943 +8.08%
1993 3.64M +387,655 +11.93%
1992 3.25M +239,702 +7.97%
1991 3.01M +35,070 +1.18%
1990 2.97M

Southern Asia, 2025

The same indicator for neighboring countries — with links to their pages

About the indicator

The economically active population — everyone aged 15 and over who either works or actively looks for work. It covers the employed, the unemployed and first-time job seekers; it leaves out students, homemakers and other people who do not offer their labor on the market. The size of the labor force is the basic constraint on the growth potential of an economy.

Source: ILOSTAT (ILO), license CC BY 4.0.