Labor market in Djibouti

The preliminary labor force survey (EDST 2025) for the first and second quarters is the first nationally representative survey of its kind in Djibouti. It shows that 51.8% of the working-age population is not participating in the labor market. Among the active labor force, 63.8% were employed and 36.2% were unemployed. The employment rate for women was about 20.9%, while 64.1% were outside the labor market. More than half of young women were unemployed; 46.2% of 16- to 24-year-olds were neither employed nor in education. These figures remain preliminary until the complete results for all four quarters are available. The latest available ILOSTAT household survey (ILOSTAT) from 2017 is less suitable for current comparisons. In the capital, services account for 70.4% of employment, industry for 16.5%, and trade for 11.9%. Outside the capital, employment is distributed more broadly across services at 50.3%, trade at 20.5%, agriculture and livestock farming at 17.1%, and industry at 12.1%. In the capital, 84.5% of workers are employees, 12.8% are self-employed, and 2.1% are employers. In the other regions, the shares are 57.2% employees, 32.8% self-employed, and 6.3% employers. These differences explain why formal jobs are more concentrated in the capital and why regional incomes more often come from self-employment, family work, or informal activities. Employment opportunities arise particularly in ports, logistics, transport, trade, construction, tourism, public administration, energy, and digital services. Economic growth was 6.5% in 2025, but it was driven mainly by services and logistics. Capital-intensive growth does not automatically create enough jobs. Disruptions to foreign trade or in the Red Sea can therefore hit the port and logistics sector particularly hard. Labor-law reform was discussed in 2025; the government roadmap for 2026 to 2030 focuses, among other things, on formalization, youth and women's employment, and vocational qualifications. The qualification structure only partly matches demand. 50.6% of workers had no formal education, while 34% had completed upper secondary education or held a tertiary qualification. At the same time, 40.3% of unemployed people had a higher education qualification. This creates both a shortage of suitable entry-level profiles and bottlenecks among technical specialists. The SKILLS training project (SKILLS Project) trained about 1,500 people in logistics, construction, energy, hospitality, languages, procurement, occupational safety, monitoring and evaluation, Big Data, and cybersecurity. A one-hundred-percent placement rate was documented only for a project-specific group of crane operators and is not a national placement rate. The Employment and Vocational Integration Agency (ANEFIP) is responsible for employment placement. It connects job seekers, employers, training, and vocational integration. The employment and qualifications observatory (ONEQ) and ANEFIP maintain data on job seekers, formal businesses, vacancies, and qualifications, thereby supporting labor-market information systems. Private employment agencies are legally permitted, but they may not charge job seekers a placement fee. The reach and effectiveness of job-search support is not secured nationwide. Further responsibilities lie with the Ministry of Labor and Formalization and Social Protection, the labor inspectorate, the Djibouti statistics office (INSTAD), the vocational training authority (MENFOP), and the National Social Security Fund (CNSS). Employment may take the form of formal wage employment, public service, work in a private company, self-employment or entrepreneurship, or household and agricultural work. Informal work is particularly widespread outside the capital and often does not provide full access to social security or labor-law protection. In the private sector, 77.9% of employment was informal, compared with 14.2% in the public sector. The statutory national minimum wage (SMIG) under the law (Loi n° 221/AN/17) is 35,000 FDJ per month. A current nationwide adjustment is not documented. There is also no reliable current wage overview by occupation; actual pay therefore depends heavily on the activity, employer, contract, and degree of formalization. Labor law applies nationwide. The statutory working time is 48 hours per week. The weekly rest period is at least 24 hours and usually falls on Friday. Paid leave amounts to 2.5 working days per month. A written contract is required, among other cases, for an apprenticeship, a fixed-term contract lasting more than one month, foreign workers, a probationary period, and work outside the usual place of residence. The employer must register with CNSS no later than 48 hours after starting business activities or hiring. Employees receive a 13-digit CNSS number. The employer reports and pays contributions monthly by the tenth day. The official CNSS schedule lists a 5.5% employer contribution for family benefits, 1% for occupational accidents, 4% from the employer and 4% from the employee for old-age insurance, and 5% from the employer and 2% from the employee for health care. The heading of the official page states 21.7%, while the individual items total 21.5%; this discrepancy should be clarified with CNSS before any specific calculation. Foreign workers first need an employment contract and then a work permit from ANEFIP. The employer's file includes, among other things, a declaration, four copies of the contract, an employer's letter, two photographs, and a passport and visa. If the responsible authority does not respond within 60 days, the permit is deemed granted under the Code. For refugees, the refugee card serves as a five-year, renewable work permit. An asylum certificate may establish a temporary work permit for six months and may be extended; the responsible refugee assistance office (ONARS) and the Ministry of the Interior are responsible. These formal routes exist alongside practical informal employment, particularly in regional mobility and in the transport and logistics sector. The responsible institution should be consulted when checking specific fees, formalization costs, and required documents.