In 2024 alone, the Rwandan economy added 358,000 new jobs, contributing to a significant drop in the unemployment rate from 17 per cent to 14 per cent, according to the Ministry of Labor and Public Service. This growth is aligned with the ambitious target set under the second National Strategy for Transformation (NST2), which aims to create 1.25 million productive and decent jobs over a five-year period ending 2029. Here are some of the top 10 sectors with the biggest share of employment in Rwanda. ALSO READ: Labour minister urges compliance with occupational safety standards Agriculture, forestry, and fishing continue to dominate employment, providing jobs for approximately 1,775,000 people up from 1,720,000 in 2023, an increase of 3.2 per cent, according to Labour Force Survey 2024 by the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR). Wholesale and retail trade, along with repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles, ranked second, employing 962,000 workers, which was a 18.7 per cent increase compared to 2023. The construction sector came third, employing 424,000 people. This was a 9.8 per cent increase from the jobs recorded in 2023, pointing to sustained investment in infrastructure and urban development, according to NISR. The transportation and storage sector saw the highest rise in employment, with a 29.6 per cent growth, reaching 300,000 workers in 2024. Manufacturing ranked fifth, having employed up to 253,000 people, reflecting a 16 per cent rise from the number of jobs reported in2023. The increase also indicates improvements in logistics, connectivity, and mobility, according to the survey report. ALSO READ: A labour of love: building resilient Rwandan families Meanwhile, the education sector saw a 19.6 per cent increase, employing 197,000 people in 2024 from 165,000 in 2023, ranking sixth. Meanwhile, activities of households as employers employed 173,000 people in 2024, from 163,000 in recorded in 2023. Accommodation and food services activities increased to 153,000 jobs in 2024, from 122,000 jobs in 2023 marking an increase of 25.4 per cent making it the eighth place. Other services, that don't neatly fit into the main sectors, increased from 136,000 in 2024 from 110,000 in 2023 marking an increase of 24.1 per cent bringing it to the ninth rank. Administrative and support activities saw employed 94,000 people from 78,000 recorded in 2023, making an increase of 21.4 per cent and ranking the 10th sector generating many jobs. “The improvement [in job creation in 2024] indicates enhanced entrepreneurship and improved access to resources, said Francois Ngoboka, the Manager of National Employment Programne in the Ministry of Labour and Public Service. He added that it is also a result of private investment in priority sectors, development of talent pools for critical sectors, and optimised job creation in major public and private investments projects. “It implies the mainstreaming of employment creation into both public and private sector investments, with a focus on high impact, labor intensive projects,” Ngoboka said.
