Dar es Salaam, December 2025 — Tanzania’s 2024 Integrated Labour Force Survey reveals a labour market sending mixed signals: significant gains in employment and wages are paired with a record-high informal sector that now encompasses 94.6% of all workers.
The most encouraging figures show robust economic activity. The national unemployment rate fell sharply from 8.7% to 6.2%, while the average monthly wage rose to 477,241 Tanzanian Shillings (TZS). Furthermore, the employment-to-population ratio increased to 68.7%, indicating that the economy is successfully creating more jobs.
The Challenge of Precarious Work
However, this job growth is overwhelmingly informal. The share of workers in the informal economy has risen to 94.6%, up from 92.5%. Most workers (74.8%) are classified as “dependent contractors,” a status that often lacks the security and protections of formal employment. The gender wage gap remains, with women’s unemployment rate at 7.5% compared to 4.9% for men.
Structural Changes and Living Costs
The economy is slowly diversifying. Agriculture’s share of employment has declined to 54.2%, while services and industry have grown. Despite rising wages, the average salary faces pressure from the cost of living. Separate analyses suggest that single-person living costs in Tanzania can be significantly higher than the average wage reported by some sources, highlighting a persistent affordability challenge.
The survey marks a milestone in Tanzania’s data collection, offering a clearer picture for policymakers. The central task is now to translate strong headline growth into more secure, formal, and high-quality jobs for its workforce.
