The 2025 Labour Market Survey, conducted from March to August 2025, covered 26.4 million people aged 15 and above. The labor force participation rate was 50.9%, and the employment-to-population ratio was 44.7%. Among people in the labor force, 87.8% were employed and 12.2% were unemployed. Unemployment was 13.9% for women and 10.8% for men, 12.8% in urban areas and 11.8% in rural areas. Youth unemployment reached 17.9% among people aged 15 to 24 and 16.2% among those aged 18 to 30. NEET, meaning not in employment, education or training, affected 42.6% of people aged 15 to 24 and 50.9% of those aged 18 to 30. Services provided 50.5% of employment, agriculture, forestry and fishing 37.1%, and industry 12.4%. Services accounted for 56.4% of employment among women and 46.3% among men. Establishment-based data recorded 2,373,109 formal jobs and 7,350,199 informal-establishment jobs. Informal employment represented 89.2% when agriculture was included and 87.6% when agriculture was excluded. Kampala had the lowest recorded informality rate at 73.5%, while Karamoja had the highest at 96.8%. Kigezi, Teso and Bunyoro also recorded high rates of 93.7%, 93.0% and 92.9%. Rural labor-market access and job quality are generally weaker, while urban areas concentrate more service-sector opportunities. Formal-business occupation demand included 663,681 professional positions, 505,076 services and sales positions, 354,815 elementary positions, 326,478 management positions and 184,373 technician and associate-professional positions. Skills do not always match available work: 2021 evidence indicated that about half of young people had a job or education matching their background, while about 38% were under-educated for their work. Technical and vocational education and training, commonly called TVET, provides a skills and competence pathway through National Certificate and Diploma programs and Community Polytechnic routes. The BTVET Act 2008 and the Uganda Vocational Qualifications Framework support this system, while the Ministry of Education and Sports and the TVET Council oversee relevant functions. Admission and tuition depend on the provider and course. The UNHS 2023/24 recorded a median monthly payment of UGX 260,000 including cash and in-kind payments, or UGX 200,000 for cash payments alone. The cash-and-in-kind median was UGX 327,000 for men and UGX 175,000 for women, UGX 420,000 in services and UGX 108,000 in agriculture, and UGX 767,000 in public employment compared with UGX 225,000 in private employment. These wage figures exclude employers and own-account workers, so they do not fully capture informal earnings. Uganda has no single national labor-market authority. The Uganda Bureau of Statistics produces labor statistics and surveys. The Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development manages labor policy, the labor-market information system, standards, inspections, disputes and employment services. District Labour Officers provide local administration. Employers, private recruitment agencies and informal referrals also play a major role. The formal legal framework includes the Employment Act 2006, Labour Unions Act 2006, Labour Disputes Arbitration and Settlement Act 2003, Occupational Safety and Health Act 2006 and National Social Security Act 1985. Coverage and enforcement are more limited in informal work. Formal workers may have written employment conditions, safety protections, wage and payment protections, leave rights, union rights and collective-bargaining rights. The reference overtime rate is 1.5 times the normal rate, rising to twice the normal rate on a gazetted public holiday, with a 48-hour weekly baseline. The Employment Services and Management Information System, or ESMIS, allows eligible Ugandan citizens to upload a CV, receive job matches, apply, receive invitations and track application status. Employers can register, publish vacancies and invite applicants. ESMIS also offers free counselling and guidance, and its portal supports licensing and renewal processes for recruitment companies. The External Employment Management Information System, or EEMIS, covers overseas jobs and approved recruitment agencies. No uniform national placement time has been established; results depend on the vacancy, employer, qualifications and application process. Informal referrals and personal networks remain practically significant because most employment is informal. The 2025 survey recorded 155,240 formal vacancies and 305,364 informal-establishment vacancies. Formal vacancies were concentrated in services, with 115,927, followed by industry with 22,566 and agriculture with 16,747. Informal-establishment vacancies included 223,106 in services, 80,100 in industry and 2,160 in agriculture. Among formal vacancies, 35.9% resulted from resignations and 30.0% from expansion. Formal job losses totalled 46,217, including 17,731 layoffs, 13,623 positions removed through downsizing and 10,526 affected by outsourcing. Uganda's National Development Plan IV for financial years 2025/26 to 2029/30 prioritizes agro-industrialisation, tourism, minerals, oil and gas, ICT and science, technology and innovation, private-sector job creation and industry-driven skilling. Internal migration has also shaped labor supply. The 2021 labor-force evidence estimated that 7% of the working-age population had moved internally since 2015; employment was the stated reason for 37% of moves nationally and 46% of urban moves. Administrative records counted 26,732 Ugandan workers placed abroad in 2024, including 24,355 women and 2,377 men, and 244,770 between 2020 and 2024. Saudi Arabia accounted for 215,970 of the 2020-2024 placements. The Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development and its External Employment Unit regulate licensed recruitment, with coordination involving Uganda Missions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Entebbe. Deceptive recruitment, contract substitution, excessive fees, unpaid wages, passport confiscation and forced labor are documented risks. Labor-market statistics concern workforce supply, demand, pay patterns, matching, skills and migration; employment-contract detail, occupation profiles and unemployment-only support belong to related subjects.
Labor market in Uganda
Uganda's labor market combines formal employment with a much larger informal economy across services, agriculture, forestry and fishing, and industry. The 2025 Labour Market Survey found that 89.2% of employment including agriculture was informal, while services accounted for 50.5% of employment. Access, earnings and job opportunities differ by gender, region, education and urban or rural location. Public agencies, district labor offices, training bodies, employers, private recruitment agencies and informal networks all connect workers with opportunities.
Tip
Use Uganda's labor-market data as a screening tool, not as a promise of a particular job or wage. Match your target sector, location, employment form and qualification to each opportunity, then verify the employer, written conditions, payment and safety arrangements. Use formal channels when traceability and workplace protections matter, and treat informal work as carrying greater uncertainty.