Labor market in the Republic of the Congo

The economic structure and employment are not developing in parallel in the Republic of the Congo. Hydrocarbons generate approximately 40% of gross domestic product and around 80% of exports, but employ comparatively few people. Services contribute about 33% of gross domestic product, agriculture, forestry, and fishing about 6%, and manufacturing about 6.5%. Self-employment, unpaid family work, and low-productivity services and agricultural activities therefore remain particularly important for employment and income. Among young people, the informal share was 71.6% in an analysis based on the School-to-Work Transition Survey. The formal labor market is heavily concentrated in Brazzaville and Pointe-Noire. Of the jobseekers registered with the ACPE, around 46.7% were in Brazzaville in 2025, 46.1% in Pointe-Noire, and 7.1% in other cities. Outside the major cities, agriculture and informal activities play a larger role in the supply of work. Among young people, the share working in agriculture was 45.5% in rural areas, compared with 3.5% in cities. The jobs formalized by the ACPE in 2025 were concentrated especially in consulting and human resources at 28.4%, agriculture and agribusiness at 22.7%, transport and logistics at 11.1%, trade at 6.5%, construction at 5.4%, and oil and gas at 4.2%. Industry and maintenance, forestry and timber, and other services supplemented these areas. Private services are a central entry point for many young workers, while technical positions in oil, gas, and industry require higher qualifications and often documented experience. Of the 41,298 jobseekers registered with the ACPE, more than 55.5% held the Baccalaureate (Bac) or a higher qualification in 2025; 15,354 had a qualification at Bac+3 level (Bac+3) or higher. The supply of applicants was concentrated, among other areas, in transport and logistics, industry and maintenance, and construction. In the industrial applicant group, maintenance technicians accounted for 48.1%, while in construction, workers for structural and general site work accounted for 64.9%. Vocational and technical training and qualifying further education should therefore be linked more closely to actual demand. The National Fund for Employability and Apprenticeship (Fonds National d’Appui à l’Employabilité et à l’Apprentissage, FONEA) supports employability and training measures. The ACPE is a public administrative institution and replaced the former National Employment Office (ONEMO) structure under Law No. 7-2019. It registers jobseekers, receives job offers, provides advice and guidance, arranges direct or indirect placements, validates employment contracts, and issues work cards. In 2025, it registered 33,653 jobseekers for employment, 6,788 for internships, and 857 for training. It reported 3,172 direct placements, including 2,207 occasional and 965 permanent placements. From January to June, more than 90% of direct placements were achieved through the direct channel. The digital platform is becoming more important for registration and open vacancies; no publicly documented usage fee or uniform placement period has been established. The Labour Code (Code du travail) applies in the formal sector. Where qualifications are equal, access to private-sector jobs may be prioritized in favor of Congolese nationals. The ACPE validates contracts for Congolese and foreign workers and issues work cards. Informal work, by contrast, often takes place without a registered contract and without the protection of formal labor law. The SMIG of 70,400 XAF per month applies nationwide and across all sectors as the formal wage floor; it says nothing about actual incomes in informal activities. Around 84% of the jobs formalized in 2025 involved fixed-term contracts (CDD), indicating low contract stability. Economic growth was about 2.6% in 2024. Revenue at non-oil companies rose by 11%, but their employment increased by only 3%. Unreliable electricity supply, limited access to finance, and a difficult business environment constrain the employment impact of growth. The expected decline in oil production and the transition to a lower-emission economy increase the pressure to diversify into agribusiness and food production, forestry, manufacturing, logistics, construction, energy, the digital economy, and the green economy. In 2025, 27,023 jobs were formalized for Congolese nationals and 1,743 for foreign workers. Congolese nationals therefore accounted for 94.1% of these jobs; the number of formalized jobs for them rose by 82.4% compared with the previous year, while the number of jobs for foreign workers fell by 40.9%. Foreign workers were employed almost exclusively in the private sector and were concentrated particularly in oil and gas and industry and maintenance. Different authorization categories exist for foreign workers, including fixed-term or provisional work permits and permits for expatriate executives. The Republic of the Congo ratified ILO Conventions C097 and C143 on labor migration in 2023. For senior technical positions, international certificates and relevant experience, especially in engineering, oil and gas, and operations, remain key access factors.