For the second quarter of the year 2026, the unemployment rate (broad) is estimated at 19,1%, corresponding to a slight increase of 0,1 percentage point compared to the same period in 2025 (19,0%). According to the latest report from the Statistics Agency, the rate remains higher in rural areas (29,2%) than in urban areas (12,6%).
By age group, it is 8,8 percentage points higher among youth compared to adults (23,5% versus 14,7% for adults). By gender, women are more affected by unemployment, regardless of the age group and place of residence.
In the strict sense of BIT, unemployment stood at 3,2% in the quarter under review. On the other hand, the employment rate, which measures the percentage of people employed among those of working age, stood at 41,4% in the quarter under review, a decrease of 0,3 percentage point compared to the second quarter of the year 2025 (41,7%).
The employment level is higher in urban areas than in rural areas, with respective rates of 46,9% and 33,2%. Furthermore, the employment rate is almost twice as high for adults (57,7%) as for youth (30,6%).
Moreover, it is higher for men compared to women, regardless of the age group considered (youth or adults), with a gap of 31,2 percentage points among adults. In the second quarter of 2026, the ANSD also mentions that six out of ten people among the employed population are independent workers (60,8%).
This category includes own-account workers (59,8%) and employers (1,0%). Wage earners accounted for 30,4% of the workforce and family workers for 8,5%4 Examination by gender highlights differences in the distribution levels across categories, with the proportion of independent workers being higher among women (69,1% versus 55,9% for men).
Conversely, the proportion of male wage earners (34,4%) is 1,3 times higher than that recorded for women (23,7%). Furthermore, family workers are more numerous in proportion for men (9,5%) than for women (6,8%).
Published on 02/10/26 10:06 Mouhamadou Dieng