ILO: Libya has highest youth unemployment rate in North Africa

The International Labour Organization (ILO) said Libya recorded the highest youth unemployment rate in North Africa in 2025, at 50.1%, compared with an overall unemployment rate of 18.8%, according to estimates in its Global Employment Trends for Youth 2026 report.

Libya ranked first among North African countries in youth unemployment, ahead of Tunisia at 38.1%, Algeria at 29.4%, Morocco at 21.9%, and Egypt at 18.3%.

The figures reveal a significant gap between young people and the broader labor market in Libya, with youth unemployment exceeding the overall rate by 31.3 percentage points, highlighting the difficulties young people face in entering the labor market and securing stable employment.

Globally, the ILO said the unemployment rate among young people aged 15 to 24 edged up to 12.4% in 2025 from 12.3% in 2024, with around 67 million young people unemployed.

The organization warned that persistently high unemployment rates, coupled with a growing number of young people not in employment, education or training, reflect structural barriers preventing large numbers of young people from entering the labor market, with women disproportionately affected.

The ILO said addressing these challenges requires more effective policies to create jobs, promote productive investment, and better align education and training with labor market needs.

The figures place youth employment among Libya’s most pressing economic and social challenges, particularly given the wide gap between overall and youth unemployment and the changes affecting global labor markets due to technology and artificial intelligence.