Zambia’s unemployment falls to 9.9 percent

Zambia’s unemployment rate fell from 12.9 percent in 2024 to 9.9 percent in 2025, according to the 2025 Labour Force Survey and Employment and Earnings Inquiry, released in Lusaka on 16 October 2026.

Over the same period, the share of the working-age population in employment rose from 33.1 percent to 37.1 percent. The survey, carried out by the Zambia Statistics Agency with the Ministry of Labour and Social Security and the Ministry of Finance and National Planning, estimates that 4.76 million Zambians were in work in 2025, out of a working-age population of 12.8 million.

Whilst Young people continue to face a tougher job market, Statistician General Sheila S. Mudenda said the findings would help address labour market challenges and ensure that economic growth translates into productive jobs and better livelihoods, particularly for those young people, women and persons with disabilities.

Ministry of Labour and Social Security Permanent Secretary Zechariah Luhanga said the data would help Government match investment, skills development and workforce preparation to the needs of the labour market under the Grow Zambia Agenda, including through apprenticeships, work-based learning and the development of a Critical Skills List.