Over the past two decades in Tajikistan, the number of working-age and employed population has increased, yet more people remain outside the labor market. Statistical data also show a low level of labor force participation and a significant gap between men and women.
The Agency for Statistics under the President of Tajikistan published a labor force survey for 2025. It discusses the size of the labor force, employment, unemployment, and people who are not engaged in the labor market.
Data by regions is also provided separately, showing how the main labor force indicators have changed over the past 21 years.
According to the survey, from 2004 to 2025, the working-age population in Tajikistan increased by 2.9 million people. If in 2004 there were about 4 million such residents, by 2025 their number reached almost 6.9 million. At the same time, just over 3 million people were working or looking for work.
The number of employed people was 2.8 million, with 191,200 unemployed. The unemployment rate across the country was 6.3%.
Meanwhile, a significant part of the population does not participate in the labor market. There are 3.8 million such people, which is more than the size of the labor force.
Women often remain outside the labor market
The survey data show that women are significantly more likely to remain outside the labor market. Among men, the labor force participation rate is 57.1%, while among women it is 30.9%. The gap persists in employment: 54.1% of men and 28.3% of women are employed. Moreover, the unemployment rate among women is higher — 8.5% compared to 5.2% among men.
Among those not in the labor force, women make up almost 62%.
The majority of labor resources are in rural areas
The majority of the working-age population in Tajikistan lives in rural areas — 70.7%, whereas urban areas account for 29.3%.
A similar pattern is observed in the labor force: 71.3% is in rural areas and 28.7% in urban areas. Among the employed, the share of rural residents is 71.6%.
At the same time, among the unemployed, two-thirds also reside in rural areas — 66.7%. Among those not in the labor force, the share of rural residents is 70.2%.
The labor market develops unevenly across regions
The ORS-2025 data indicate that in the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO) and Sughd province, the population is more actively engaged in the labor market, while in Khatlon province and districts subordinate to the center (RRP), issues of employment and underutilization of labor potential are more noticeable.
The largest number of working-age residents live in Khatlon province — about 2.5 million people.
Sughd province leads in terms of labor force and employment numbers. There, about 1.1 million people are working or looking for work, and the number of employed exceeds 1 million.
The highest labor force participation rates are noted in GBAO — 59% and in Sughd province — 54.8%. The lowest rates are in RRP, Khatlon province, and Dushanbe.
Unemployment is highest in GBAO — 8.6% and in RRP — 7.4%. The lowest rate is recorded in Sughd Region — 5.9%.
The highest level of labor force underutilization is noted in RRP — 14.5%.
What has changed in the labor market over 21 years
The survey also presents the dynamics of the main labor force indicators from 2004 to 2025. During this time, the working-age population, labor force, and number of employed in Tajikistan have increased.
The size of the labor force increased from 2.3 million to just over 3 million people. The number of employed grew from 2.1 million to 2.8 million people.
The main change is the increase in the number of people not in the labor force. If in 2004 there were about 1.3 million such people, by 2025 there are 3.8 million. Over 21 years, their number has nearly tripled. This means that more and more working-age residents neither work nor seek work.
Researchers note that today’s main issue is not only unemployment but also the fact that many working-age residents do not participate in the labor market.
