Maldives — Labor participation
Labor Force Participation Rate for Maldives, 1990–2025.
Labor participation for Maldives was 63.50% in 2025, according to the latest World Bank data. The series covers 36 years, from 1990 to 2025. The highest recorded value was 63.63% in 2019. The lowest was 49.52% in 1990 (about 1.3× the low point). Across that span the compound annual growth rate works out to 0.71% per year.
Maldives ranks 79 of 187 economies on this measure (1 = highest), putting it in the top 42%. The median for South Asia is 58.80%, so Maldives sits above it. It peaked in 2019 and has fallen 0% since. Over the last decade (2015–2025) the figure moved up 13%. Within South Asia it ranks 2 of 6 economies; Bangladesh (58.80%) is just below it. Its sharpest one-year move was down 8% in 2020. That is 4% above this series' own ten-year average.
Data highlights
Doubling roughly every 98 years at that pace.
World ranking. Climbed: 162nd of 187 in 1990 → 141st of 187 in 2000 → 146th of 187 in 2010 → 109th of 187 in 2020 → 78th of 182 in 2025.
Key figures
Full history — 1990 to 2025
| Year | % of population ages 15+ | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 63.5% | +0.3 pp |
| 2024 | 63.2% | -0.1 pp |
| 2023 | 63.33% | -0.1 pp |
| 2022 | 63.42% | +3.6 pp |
| 2021 | 59.78% | +1.5 pp |
| 2020 | 58.3% | -5.3 pp |
| 2019 | 63.63% | +2.2 pp |
| 2018 | 61.43% | +2.3 pp |
| 2017 | 59.18% | +2.3 pp |
| 2016 | 56.89% | +0.7 pp |
| 2015 | 56.21% | +0.7 pp |
| 2014 | 55.53% | +0.7 pp |
| 2013 | 54.85% | +0.7 pp |
| 2012 | 54.16% | +0.7 pp |
| 2011 | 53.48% | +0.7 pp |
| 2010 | 52.79% | +0.7 pp |
| 2009 | 52.1% | -0.3 pp |
| 2008 | 52.4% | -0.3 pp |
| 2007 | 52.7% | -0.3 pp |
| 2006 | 53% | -0.3 pp |
| 2005 | 53.3% | -0.3 pp |
| 2004 | 53.6% | -0.3 pp |
| 2003 | 53.9% | -0.3 pp |
| 2002 | 54.2% | -0.3 pp |
| 2001 | 54.5% | -0.3 pp |
| 2000 | 54.8% | +0.7 pp |
| 1999 | 54.11% | +0.7 pp |
| 1998 | 53.41% | +0.7 pp |
| 1997 | 52.71% | +0.7 pp |
| 1996 | 52.01% | +0.7 pp |
| 1995 | 51.31% | +0.4 pp |
| 1994 | 50.95% | +0.4 pp |
| 1993 | 50.59% | +0.4 pp |
| 1992 | 50.24% | +0.4 pp |
| 1991 | 49.88% | +0.4 pp |
| 1990 | 49.52% | — |
Frequently asked questions
What was Maldives’s Labor participation in 1991?
49.88% (1991). The full year-by-year table above lists every published year, most recent first.
Are changes in this series measured in percentage points?
Yes. The series is a share expressed in % of population ages 15+, so year-over-year movements in the Change column are percentage points (pp), not percent.
Is Maldives’s Labor participation growing or shrinking?
Between 1990 and 2025 the series was growing overall: +28.2% in total — about 0.7% a year compounded.
Where does this data come from?
World Bank Open Data (CC BY-4.0), indicator SL.TLF.CACT.ZS. Values are reproduced as published; this page only computes summary statistics such as change, CAGR and extremes.
What are the most recent published figures?
The last five published years: 2025: 63.5%; 2024: 63.2%; 2023: 63.33%; 2022: 63.42%; 2021: 59.78%. Earlier years are in the full-history table below.
Related data
SL.TLF.CACT.ZS — Labor Force Participation Rate. Data licensed under CC BY 4.0. Values are reproduced as published; this page computes the summary statistics (change, CAGR, extremes) from the underlying annual series. View the original dataset on data.worldbank.org.