ILO · Employment in Industry
Employment in industry by country
What share of working people work in industry?
Of the 182 countries compared in 2025, Oman had the highest reading, 39.435%, and Burundi had the lowest reading, 3.103%. In the middle country the figure was 18.875%. Among the 182 countries measured in every edition since 1991, the middle one moved from 22.244% to 18.875%.
Share
Part ofWork & Labour
Employment in industry · 2025
Context statistic
Highest of 182Oman
39.435%012025 · position · derived
The highest and the lowest
The three countries with the highest values of 182 compared, the three with the lowest, and the highest on each continent. This statistic has no better end, so no country is shown as leading.
- 1
- 2
- 3
Lowest in 2025
- 182
Burundi3.103% - 181
Timor-Leste3.804% - 180
Mozambique6.440%
Positions out of 182. This statistic has no better end: the two ends describe size, not success.
02Every measured country
Employment in industry on a map
Each country is shaded by its value, in five groups holding the same number of countries. Hover a country for its value, or select it to open its profile. Below the map, each continent’s middle country.
Darker is a higher value. This statistic has no better end, so the shades describe size, not success.
- 3.103–14.014%
- 14.152–17.752%
- 17.835–20.621%
- 20.648–25.956%
- 25.974–39.435%
- No reading in 2025 (5 measured in an earlier edition)
- Asia
22.802%
the middle country, of 48 measured · 52 members
Oman39.435%Timor-Leste3.804%Highest and lowest reading in Asia.
- Europe
21.983%
the middle country, of 39 measured · 49 members
Czechia34.894%
Luxembourg7.644%Highest and lowest reading in Europe.
- Americas
18.778%
the middle country, of 33 measured · 48 members
Guyana31.094%
Haiti8.800%Highest and lowest reading in Americas.
- Oceania
15.941%
the middle country, of 11 measured · 21 members
Tonga23.339%
Solomon Islands7.579%Highest and lowest reading in Oceania.
- Africa
14.796%
the middle country, of 51 measured · 55 members
Tunisia33.279%Burundi3.103%Highest and lowest reading in Africa.
- Every region
22 sub-regions, highest middle country first
- Eastern Europe
30.535%
the middle country, of 9 measured · 10 members
Czechia34.894%
Moldova12.554%Highest and lowest reading in Eastern Europe.
- Northern Africa
29.357%
the middle country, of 5 measured · 6 members
Tunisia33.279%
Libya18.627%Highest and lowest reading in Northern Africa.
- Southern Europe
25.456%
the middle country, of 12 measured · 17 members
Slovenia31.968%
Greece16.315%Highest and lowest reading in Southern Europe.
- Southern Asia
25.255%
the middle country, of 9 measured · 9 members
Iran34.702%
Bhutan15.879%Highest and lowest reading in Southern Asia.
- Central Asia
24.611%
the middle country, of 5 measured · 5 members
Turkmenistan28.567%
Tajikistan17.655%Highest and lowest reading in Central Asia.
- Western Asia
23.841%
the middle country, of 16 measured · 19 members
Oman39.435%
Yemen11.128%Highest and lowest reading in Western Asia.
- Eastern Asia
23.090%
the middle country, of 7 measured · 8 members
China31.792%
Macau10.993%Highest and lowest reading in Eastern Asia.
- Southern Africa
20.760%
the middle country, of 5 measured · 5 members
Lesotho33.037%
Botswana15.773%Highest and lowest reading in Southern Africa.
- South-eastern Asia
20.386%
the middle country, of 11 measured · 11 members
Vietnam34.826%Timor-Leste3.804%Highest and lowest reading in South-eastern Asia.
- Central America
20.058%
the middle country, of 8 measured · 8 members
Mexico24.520%
Belize15.349%Highest and lowest reading in Central America.
- South America
19.897%
the middle country, of 12 measured · 12 members
Guyana31.094%
Ecuador16.590%Highest and lowest reading in South America.
- Western Europe
19.339%
the middle country, of 7 measured · 9 members
Germany25.974%Luxembourg7.644%Highest and lowest reading in Western Europe.
- Northern Europe
18.244%
the middle country, of 11 measured · 13 members
Estonia25.997%Channel Islands12.646%
Highest and lowest reading in Northern Europe.
- Caribbean
16.554%
the middle country, of 11 measured · 24 members
Trinidad and Tobago24.181%Haiti8.800%Highest and lowest reading in Caribbean.
- Western Africa
15.855%
the middle country, of 16 measured · 16 members
Cabo Verde23.066%
Liberia8.348%Highest and lowest reading in Western Africa.
- Middle Africa
13.393%
the middle country, of 9 measured · 9 members
São Tomé and Príncipe22.515%
Angola7.199%Highest and lowest reading in Middle Africa.
- Eastern Africa
10.091%
the middle country, of 16 measured · 19 members
Mauritius20.621%Burundi3.103%Highest and lowest reading in Eastern Africa.
- Melanesia
10.045%
the middle country, of 5 measured · 5 members
New Caledonia20.648%Solomon Islands7.579%Highest and lowest reading in Melanesia.
- Australia and New Zealand
2 of 2 measured — too few for a middle: Australia, New Zealand.
New Zealand19.938%
Australia19.293%Highest and lowest reading in Australia and New Zealand.
- Micronesia
1 of 7 measured — too few for a middle: Guam.
Guam19.256%Highest and lowest reading in Micronesia.
- Northern America
2 of 4 measured — too few for a middle: Canada, United States.
United States18.912%
Canada18.748%Highest and lowest reading in Northern America.
- Polynesia
3 of 7 measured — too few for a middle: French Polynesia, Samoa, Tonga.
Tonga23.339%
French Polynesia14.334%Highest and lowest reading in Polynesia.
03The whole field at once
The spread
182 countries, one dot each, on one scale — further right is a higher value. Half the countries are above 18.875%; a quarter are above 24.543%, and a quarter below 15.197%. The bar in each row marks that continent’s middle country.
04All 187 ever measured
Every country
In order, highest value first. “=” marks a position shared with another country. International Labour Organization (ILO) ranks nobody on this measure; the position is derived here by ordering the published values. Neither end of this table is the good end. A high industrial share can mean an advanced manufacturing base or an economy built on extraction, and countries at opposite ends of the development scale can sit side by side here.
Showing 25 of 187 countries
Values for 2025. The change column compares 2025 with 2024 only; the sparkline covers the recent editions.
051991–2025 · 35 reference years
Over time
Each point is one reference year from 1991. A falling industrial share is the normal path of a maturing economy, but it is also what deindustrialisation looks like — the line alone does not say which.
- the middle country
- the middle half of countries
- the middle of the 182 countries measured every time
- each continent’s middle country
The same, year by year
| Year | Countries | Middle country | Middle half | Measured every time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 182 | 18.875% | 15.197% – 24.543% | 18.875% |
| 2024 | 182 | 18.968% | 15.305% – 24.617% | 18.968% |
| 2023 | 184 | 19.194% | 14.872% – 24.857% | 19.194% |
| 2022 | 186 | 19.042% | 14.775% – 24.769% | 19.042% |
| 2021 | 187 | 19.125% | 14.499% – 24.535% | 19.017% |
| 2020 | 187 | 18.999% | 14.844% – 24.418% | 18.985% |
| 2019 | 187 | 19.303% | 14.843% – 24.386% | 19.181% |
| 2018 | 187 | 19.376% | 14.704% – 24.843% | 19.238% |
| 2017 | 187 | 19.430% | 14.492% – 24.845% | 19.381% |
| 2016 | 187 | 19.425% | 14.357% – 24.781% | 19.398% |
| 2015 | 187 | 19.394% | 14.382% – 24.862% | 19.377% |
| 2014 | 187 | 19.370% | 14.330% – 24.726% | 19.325% |
| 2013 | 187 | 19.641% | 14.285% – 24.782% | 19.633% |
| 2012 | 187 | 19.769% | 14.483% – 24.931% | 19.707% |
| 2011 | 187 | 19.659% | 14.777% – 24.561% | 19.628% |
| 2010 | 187 | 19.866% | 15.139% – 24.580% | 19.808% |
| 2009 | 187 | 20.109% | 15.487% – 24.489% | 20.103% |
| 2008 | 187 | 21.077% | 15.028% – 25.142% | 21.060% |
| 2007 | 187 | 21.004% | 14.745% – 24.886% | 20.984% |
| 2006 | 187 | 20.776% | 14.717% – 24.675% | 20.762% |
| 2005 | 187 | 20.690% | 15.254% – 24.591% | 20.669% |
| 2004 | 187 | 20.564% | 15.332% – 24.768% | 20.515% |
| 2003 | 187 | 20.207% | 14.802% – 24.740% | 20.197% |
| 2002 | 187 | 20.452% | 14.236% – 25.183% | 20.356% |
| 2001 | 187 | 20.676% | 13.542% – 25.290% | 20.622% |
| 2000 | 187 | 20.934% | 13.592% – 25.459% | 20.934% |
| 1999 | 187 | 21.408% | 13.715% – 25.714% | 21.372% |
| 1998 | 187 | 21.608% | 14.026% – 25.878% | 21.589% |
| 1997 | 187 | 22.001% | 14.055% – 25.673% | 21.854% |
| 1996 | 187 | 22.091% | 14.085% – 26.105% | 22.010% |
| 1995 | 187 | 22.245% | 14.123% – 26.546% | 22.202% |
| 1994 | 187 | 22.062% | 14.142% – 26.461% | 21.996% |
| 1993 | 187 | 22.296% | 14.428% – 26.688% | 22.280% |
| 1992 | 187 | 22.102% | 14.565% – 26.906% | 22.081% |
| 1991 | 187 | 22.336% | 14.345% – 27.429% | 22.244% |
062024 → 2025
Who rose and fell
The biggest changes in value between the two newest editions — reference years recalculated in one report, not two separate publications. Places are shown second, because they also move when other countries do.
Rose most
before → afterFell most
before → after
Venezuela17.214% → 16.752% · 112th → 120th−0.462- Estonia26.453% → 25.997% · 32nd → 35th−0.455
- New Caledonia21.093% → 20.648% · 68th → 72nd−0.445
- Czechia35.333% → 34.894% · 3rd → 4th−0.438
Slovakia34.950% → 34.528% · 5th → 7th−0.422
182 countries were measured in both 2024 and 2025.
07Across every edition
Employment in industry in records
The extremes of the statistic. A record reached by more than one country names none of them.
Highest reading on record
59.579%
Employment in industry (% of total employment)
Lowest reading on record
1.669%
Employment in industry (% of total employment)
Biggest rise between editions
+10.294
41.569% → 51.863%
Biggest fall between editions
−12.254
54.683% → 42.429%
Biggest change since first measured
+32.074
7.361% → 39.435%
Highest most often
16 of 35
editions, alone at the first-listed end
08The measure
About employment in industry
Employment in industry is the share of a country’s working people employed in mining, manufacturing, construction and utilities. With farming and services it makes up the three-sector split economists use to describe the shape of an economy.
What the number is: Employment in industry (% of total employment).
09Where it fits
Connections
Its part in the Country Index, the statistics whose values line up most closely with it across countries, and others on the same subject.
In the Country Index
Context, with no vote
This statistic is published in full under Work & Labour, but does not help decide any Country Index standing.
Moves with
Where employment in industry is higher, these tend to be higher too.
- Caesarean Section RateUNICEF · 110 countries in commonρ 0.55
- CO₂ Emissions per CapitaKeyGlobal Carbon Project · 178 countries in commonρ 0.54
- Postnatal Care for Newborns Within Two DaysUNICEF · 93 countries in commonρ 0.53
Moves against
Where employment in industry is higher, these tend to be lower.
- Global Multidimensional Poverty IndexOPHI · 98 countries in commonρ −0.61
- Working Poverty RateILO · 113 countries in commonρ −0.61
- Multidimensional Poverty MeasureWorld Bank Group · 131 countries in commonρ −0.53
Rank correlation (ρ, from −1 to 1) across countries, on each statistic’s newest edition, out of 378 statistics sharing at least 80 countries with this one. Two statistics that move together do not cause each other.
10Keep reading
Explore further
The subject
The countries at either end
11Questions
Employment in industry: questions and answers
Which country has the highest employment in industry?
Oman, at 39.435%, among the 182 countries compared in 2025.
Which country has the lowest employment in industry?
Burundi, at 3.103%, among the 182 countries compared in 2025.
How many countries does the Employment in Industry cover?
182 in 2025, and 187 at least once across all editions. The number measured varies from 182 to 187 between editions.
What is the world average employment in industry?
This site does not calculate a world average, which would depend on how countries are weighted. In the middle country of the 182 compared in 2025, the figure was 18.875%.
Is this International Labour Organization (ILO)’s own ranking?
No. International Labour Organization (ILO) publishes the values but ranks nobody; the position on this page is derived by Nations Inquiry by ordering the published values, and equal values share a position.
How often is the Employment in Industry published?
This site holds 35 reference years, 1991–2025, all recalculated in International Labour Organization (ILO)’s 2026 report on one method — not 35 separate publications.
Where does the data come from, and can I download it?
From International Labour Organization (ILO), under CC BY 4.0. An ILO modelled estimate, pulled through the World Bank’s indicator API (SL.IND.EMPL.ZS). Modelled rather than measured so that one definition applies to every country. Every edition is on this site’s Datasets pages as a full table, and downloads as a CSV file with every value unrounded.
12Method
Sources, method and citation
Source
Employment in Industry — International Labour Organization (ILO)
An ILO modelled estimate, pulled through the World Bank’s indicator API (SL.IND.EMPL.ZS). Modelled rather than measured so that one definition applies to every country.
Newest edition
Report year 2025Data year 2025
Cite the source as: International Labour Organization. ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST). Geneva: ILOSTAT.
Licence: CC BY 4.0, checked 2026-09-10.
How this page reads the numbers
- International Labour Organization (ILO) ranks nobody on this measure. The position is derived by Nations Inquiry by ordering the published values; equal values share a position.
- This statistic has no better end, so the page describes higher and lower values and never calls a country a leader.
- A country is named at an end only when it holds that value alone. Where several share it, the page says how many and names none first.
- Values are stored exactly as published and trimmed only for display. “The middle country” is the median of the countries measured, not a world average.
The file itself, column by column — where it came from, what each column holds, and every edition as a CSV — is on its dataset page.
Cite this page
Nations Inquiry (2026). Employment in industry by country: Employment in Industry, data from International Labour Organization (ILO). https://nationsinquiry.com/statistics/industry-employment