South Africa
ZA desk: South Africa first; United States, United Kingdom, euro area, Australia and New Zealand alongside.
−0.32 pp
As of 2025 | % of labour force ages 15–24
| Year | Value |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 59.93% |
| 2024 | 60.25% |
| 2023 | 60.26% |
| 2022 | 61.68% |
| 2021 | 65.45% |
| 2020 | 59.61% |
| 2019 | 57.32% |
| 2018 | 53.63% |
| 2017 | 53.40% |
| 2016 | 53.45% |
| 2015 | 50.12% |
| 2014 | 51.19% |
| 2013 | 51.20% |
| 2012 | 51.32% |
| 2011 | 49.74% |
| 2010 | 50.45% |
| 2009 | 47.47% |
| 2008 | 44.58% |
| 2007 | 44.04% |
| 2006 | 43.87% |
| 2005 | 43.93% |
| 2004 | 43.86% |
| 2003 | 43.80% |
| 2002 | 43.35% |
Youth unemployment is the same ILO definition restricted to ages 15–24 (SL.UEM.1524.ZS). It is usually higher than the all-ages rate. Latest: 59.93% in 2025.
It is a rate among young people in the labour force, not a share of all young people. From 1991 to 2025 (35 years): mean 49.11%, median 44.58%; low 42.09% (1997), high 65.45% (2021).
Source: World Bank Open Data. Licence: CC BY 4.0 (terms).
This series is the unemployment rate restricted to people aged 15 to 24: those without work, available for and actively seeking it, as a share of the labour force in that age band. The source is World Bank Open Data indicator SL.UEM.1524.ZS, an ILO modelled estimate using the same unemployment definition as the all-ages series. It is a rate among young people in the labour force, not a share of all young people: a country with few teenagers looking for work can post a high youth rate while most of its young population is in education.
The chart plots annual observations for the economies you select; the range buttons shorten the period and the legend or table adds and removes lines. The ranked ledger lists each economy’s latest published year, and those years differ. Because the series is modelled from national surveys and censuses, values are revised when inputs change, so a rebuild can print a different past reading. Youth rates are usually higher than all-ages rates.
The South Africa desk places South Africa first and shows the United States, the United Kingdom, the euro area, China, Australia, India and New Zealand alongside, as far as each indicator covers them. It republishes the same World Bank ILO modelled estimates as the all-countries pages, filtered to this set, and does not recompute them for the desk. Taiwan appears only on the headline unemployment page, from the IMF World Economic Outlook, because the World Bank does not publish it. This desk is reachable by its address but is not listed in the Country selector, and the page is set to noindex.
Switch between Chart and Table for the same values, and use the range buttons to change the period. Each page prints its indicator, source and licence. Survey coverage and the treatment of informal work vary, so compare the direction of travel and broad level rather than small gaps.