8.6 Million Sri Lankans Aged 15 and Above Outside Labour Force in 2025

More than 8.6 million Sri Lankans aged 15 and above were outside the labour force in 2025, according to the Sri Lanka Labour Force Survey 2025 conducted by the Department of Census and Statistics.

The survey recorded 8,625,859 people outside the labour force, representing approximately 50.6% of the population aged 15 and above covered by the survey.

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka’s labour-force participation rate stood at 49.4%, meaning that slightly less than half of the population aged 15 and above was participating in the labour market.

Women Make Up Majority Outside Labour Force

Women accounted for the majority of those outside the labour force.

Of the 8,625,859 people outside the labour force, 6,185,730 were women, while 2,440,129 were men. Women therefore represented approximately 72% of the total, compared with around 28% for men.

The gender gap was also reflected in labour-force participation rates, which stood at 69.1% for men and 32.4% for women.

Rural Areas Account for Over 7 Million

The majority of people outside the labour force were from rural areas.

According to the survey, 7,076,080 people outside the labour force were from rural areas, while 1,549,778 were from urban areas.

Rural residents therefore accounted for approximately 82% of the total population outside the labour force.

Unemployment Rate at 3.9%

Sri Lanka recorded an overall unemployment rate of 3.9% in 2025, with an estimated 329,211 people unemployed.

The unemployment rate among women was 6.1%, more than twice the 2.8% recorded among men. The survey showed that female unemployment remained higher than male unemployment throughout the 2018–2025 period.

Unemployment also varied by sector. The rate was 3.4% in urban areas, 4.0% in rural areas and 4.8% in the estate sector.

Significant Differences Among Districts

District-level figures showed considerable variation in unemployment rates.

Hambantota recorded the highest unemployment rate at 6.6%, followed by Kegalle at 6.0% and Matale at 5.9%.

Trincomalee recorded the lowest rate at 0.6%, while Mullaitivu recorded 1.7% and Mannar 1.8%.

Other recorded rates included 4.1% in Badulla, 4.3% in Batticaloa, 4.3% in Kurunegala, 4.8% in Matara, 3.4% in Jaffna, 3.0% in Colombo and 5.9% in Kandy.

The figures highlight substantial differences in labour-market participation and unemployment across gender, residential sectors and districts, despite the national unemployment rate standing at 3.9%.