21 Labour Force Survey 2026 © NISR LFS 2026–Q1 4.5 Means of transport by areas of residence. Figure 4.6 presents the means of transport used by employed persons for commuting to and from work. In February 2026 (Q1), the predominant mode of transportation for commuting in Rwanda was walking, which accounted for 83.4% of employed population, a decline from 84.9% recorded in February 2025. Meanwhile, the shares of public transport and private transport showed slight increases, comprising 9.0% and 7.6%, respectively. In Kigali City, the trend diverged from the national average; the percentage of employed population commuting by walking decreased to 57.4%, down from 61.9% in the previous year. Conversely, the use of public transport rose to 28.2%, up from 26.1%, and private transport increased from 11.9% to 14.4%. This evolving pattern suggests that urban workers are increasingly commuting longer distances and have improved access to motorised transport options. Overall, while there is a modest transition away from walking toward alternative modes of transport, walking continues to be the most prevalent means of commuting to work throughout Rwanda. Figure 4. 6: Means of transport for employed people by province Source: National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR), Labour Force Survey (LFS) 4.6 Actual hours worked. Figure 4.7 shows the average number of hours worked during the reference week. The results indicate that the average number of hours actually worked in February 2026 (Q1) increased by 42 minutes compared to February 2025 (Q1). During the same period, the average number of hours worked by males increased by 16 minutes, while the average hours worked by females decreased by 30 minutes.. Overall, employed males worked around 6.1 hours more per week than employed females in February 2026. Figure 4.7: Average actual hours worked. Source: National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR), Labour Force Survey (LFS) 28.5 30.6 26.0 30.5 32.7 28.0 31.5 33.8 28.8 32.3 34.7 29.5 29.8 32.3 26.9 29.7 32.5 26.4 Rwanda 2022Q1 2023Q1 2024Q1 2025Q1 2026Q1 2021Q1 Male e Femal 77.4 92.4 12.7 9.9 75.4 14.7 61.9 26.1 11.9 57.4 28.2 14.4 10.0 Rwanda 2026Q1 2025Q1 2025Q1 2026Q1 2026Q1 2025Q1 2.6 5.1 91.5 3.1 5.4 84.9 8.1 7 83.4 9.0 7.6 2025Q1 2026Q1 Rural Other Urban Kigali City Walk Public Private
22 © NISR LFS 2026–Q1 Chapter 5 Unemployment and Labour Underutilization Unemployment is a particular form of labour underutilization reflecting the pressure on the labour market. It is measured in terms of number of persons without employment, actively seeking and available for employment. Labour underutilization refers to mismatch between labour supply and demand resulting into an unmet need for employment among the population. It includes unemployment, time-related underemployment, and potential labour force. Potential labour force refers to the population not in employment who express an interest in this form of work, but for whom existing conditions limit their active job search or their availability for employment. 5.1 Unemployment rate The unemployment rate, defined as the proportion of unemployed persons within the labour force, serves as a key indicator of labour market and often viewed in a general sense as an indicator of overall economic health. According to the results of LFS for February 2026 (Q1), the unemployment rate in Rwanda stood at 11.0 %, remaining relatively stable compared to 11.1 % observed in February 2025 (Q1). As illustrated in Figure 5.1, the unemployment rate was higher among females (12.8 %) compared to males (9.4 %) in February 2026 (Q1). The unemployment rate remained relatively stable for both males and females when compared to the estimates observed in February 2025 (Q1). Figure 5. 1: Unemployment rate by sex. Source: National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR), Labour Force Survey (LFS) Figure 5.2 shows that in February 2026, the unemployment rate was higher among the population living in Urban areas as compared to those living in Rural areas of Rwanda (11.7 % and 10.7 % respectively). The comparison between the current quarter with the same quarter in 2025 shows that the unemployment rate remained relatively stable for both population living in rural areas and population living in the urban areas of Rwanda. Rwanda Male Female 17.0 16.5 17.2 12.9 11.1 11.0 15.7 15.0 15.5 11.5 9.9 9.4 18.4 18.2 19.2 14.5 12.5 12.8 2021Q1 2022Q1 2023Q1 2024Q1 2025Q1 2026Q1
23 Labour Force Survey 2026 © NISR LFS 2026–Q1 Figure 5. 2: Unemployment rate by area of residence. Source: National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR), Labour Force Survey (LFS) Figure 5.3 shows the trend of the unemployment rate across different age groups. In Rwanda, the youth population is defined as persons aged 16 to 30 years. The results show that unemployment rate among youth has been relatively higher than that of adults over time. A comparison between the current survey results with those from the same quarter one-year earlier shows that the unemployment rate remained relatively stable across all age groups. Figure 5.3: Unemployment rate among youth and Adult Source: National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR), Labour Force Survey (LFS) 5.2. Labour Underutilization Labour underutilization includes unemployment, time-related underemployment, and potential labour force. Time-related underemployment refers to the situation when the working time of persons in employment is insufficient in relation to alternative employment situations in which they are willing and available to engage. Potential labour force is defined as all persons of working age outside the labour force who, during the reference period, were neither in employment nor in unemployment but who were considered as either (a) unavailable jobseekers (seeking employment but not currently available) or (b) available potential jobseekers (currently available for employment but did not carry out activities to seek employment). Rwanda Urban Rural 17.0 16.5 17.2 12.9 11.1 11.0 21.8 17.8 15.9 14.1 11.5 11.7 15.6 16.1 18.0 12.7 11.0 10.7 2021Q1 2022Q1 2023Q1 2024Q1 2025Q1 2026Q1 Rwanda 17.0 16.5 17.2 12.9 11.1 11.0 21.7 21.5 20.4 16.6 13.613.4 14.1 13.5 15.6 11.1 10.0 9.8 11.1 12.3 6.4 7.1 7.7 10.6 16-30 31-54 55+ 2021Q1 2022Q1 2023Q1 2024Q1 2025Q1 2026Q1
24 Labour Force Survey 2026 © NISR LFS 2026–Q1 Figure 5.4 illustrates that the composite measure of labour underutilization rate was 55.9% in February 2026 (Q1), reflecting an increase of 2.2 percentage points compared to February 2025 (Q1). The labour underutilization rate was higher among females (62.3 %) than among males (49.2 %). Between February 2025 (Q1) to February2026 (Q1), the labour underutilization rate increased for both sexes, rising by 2 percentage points among males and 2.5 percentage points among females. Figure 5. 4: Labour under-utilization rate by sex Source: National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR), Labour Force Survey (LFS) The results presented in figure 5.5 illustrate that the labour underutilization rate was higher among the population living in rural areas than those in urban areas of Rwanda. The comparison of February2026 (Q1) and February2025 (Q1) reveals that the labour underutilization increased by 1.2 percentage points among population living in urban areas and 2.7 percentage points among population living in rural areas. Figure 5. 5: Labour under-utilization rate by area of residence. Source: National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR), Labour Force Survey (LFS) Figure 5.6 presents the labour underutilization rate by age group. The results show that in February 2026 (Q1), the labour underutilization rate increased across all age groups compared to the same quarter one year earlier. The rate increased by 1.6 percentage points among youth, 1.9 percentage points among persons aged 31–54 years, and 5.8 percentage points among those aged 55 years and above. Rwanda Male Female 59.0 52.8 54.2 49.5 55.9 54.1 46.7 48.0 43.3 47.2 49.2 63.8 58.8 60.4 55.7 59.8 62.3 2021Q1 2022Q1 2023Q1 2024Q1 2025Q1 2026Q1 53.7 59.0 61.7 2022Q1 2023Q1 2024Q1 2025Q1 2026Q1 2021Q1 61.6 49.1 59.0 55.4 52.8 59.8 43.7 54.3 55.1 42.6 48.5 36.8 58.7 41.4 55.9 42.6 Rwanda Rural Urban
25 Labour Force Survey 2026 © NISR LFS 2026–Q1 Figure 5. 6: Trend in labour underutilization rate by Youth and Adult. Source: National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR), Labour Force Survey (LFS) 5.3 Youth Not in Employment, Education or Training (NEET) Participation in employment, education or training is important for youth in their transition to the labour market and helps in the achievement of self-sufficiency. In February 2026 (Q1), the total number of the young people aged 16-30 years, who were neither in employment, education nor training was estimated at 822,277 persons. The share of youth (16-30 years) neither in employment ,education nor training (NEET) was 22.1% in February2026 (Q1), with a higher rate among females (27.9%) than males (15.9%). Comparing the current NEET rate with the results of the same quarter one year earlier, the NEET rate decreased by 0.9 percentage points at the national level while it remained relatively stable among females and decreased by 1.1 percentage points among the males . Figure 5.7: NEET rate trend by sex Source: National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR), Labour Force Survey (LFS) In February 2026(Q1), the NEET rate was higher in rural areas (23.3%) than among those in urban areas (19.6%). A comparison of February 2026(Q1) with February 2025 (Q1) shows that among the youth population living in urban areas, NEET rate remained relatively stable while it decreased by 1.4 percentage points among youth population living in rural areas. 59 62.8 54.1 46.1 55 46.1 52.8 49.5 55+ 31-54 16-30 Rwanda 2022Q1 2023Q1 2024Q1 2025Q1 2026Q1 2021Q1 54.3 53.7 LUUR ( %) 55.9 58.3 57.4 52.6 54.5 56.1 56.6 49.4 51.6 47.7 53.2 55.1 52.8 58.6 Female Male Rwanda 2022Q1 2023Q1 2024Q1 2025Q1 2026Q1 2021Q1 34.4 28.4 40.1 27.6 35.3 31.6 NEETYOUTH (%) 33.2 28.4 23.0 22.1 27.4 21.9 17.0 15.9 38.7 34.4 28.7 27.9
26 Labour Force Survey 2026 © NISR LFS 2026–Q1 Figure 5.8: NEET rate trend by area of residence Source: National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR), Labour Force Survey (LFS) 2022Q1 2023Q1 2024Q1 2025Q1 2026Q1 2021Q1 34.4 31.6 28.4 Rwanda Rural Urban 33.2 23.0 22.1 30.4 25.0 26.1 23.6 19.4 19.6 35.3 33.4 36.8 30.6 24.7 23.3 NEETYOUTH (%)
27 © NISR LFS 2026–Q1 Chapter 6 Population outside the Labour Force The population outside the labour force constitutes a large part of the working age population. It includes population engaged exclusively in activities for producing goods or services such as subsistence production of goods, own use production of services, volunteer production of goods or services and unpaid trainee or apprentice work who have not carried out any activity for pay or profit during the reference period. It also includes students who are enrolled in schools, persons who currently do not seek for employment opportunities (not job seekers) such as discouraged job seekers. In February 2026 (Q1), the population outside the labour force stood at 35.7% of the working age population. The comparison of the current population outside labour force with the estimated value in the same quarter one year back reveals that it decreased by 1.3 percentage points. 6.1 Main components of population outside the labour Force Figure 6.1 presents the main components of the population outside the labour force. In February 2026 (Q1), 47.5% of the population outside the labour force were engaged in subsistence agriculture, while students exclusively accounted for 26.7%. The remaining 25.8% belonged to other categories. A comparison with the same quarter one year earlier shows some changes in the distribution of the population outside the labour force. The share of those in other categories increased by 1.4 percentage points, while the proportion of subsistence agriculture farmers decreased by 1.1 percentage points. The share of students remained stable. Figure 6. 1: Main components of Persons outside the labour force Source: National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR), Labour Force Survey (LFS) 2022Q1 2023Q1 2024Q1 2025Q1 2026Q1 2021Q1 Subsistence agricultural farmers Exclusively student Other outside LF 32.4 32.3 24.4 32.2 27.6 25.8 24.3 22.5 27.0 25.9 24.3 26.7 43.3 45.2 48.6 41.9 48.1 47.5 Percentage