CAIRO, Feb 23 – Egypt’s unemployment rate declined to 6.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025, reflecting gradual improvement in labor market conditions, according to data released by the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS).
The latest figures show a decrease from 6.4 percent recorded in the third quarter, representing a reduction of 0.2 percentage points. The number of unemployed individuals fell to approximately 2.15 million, down from 2.23 million in the previous quarter, marking a decline of about 77,000 people.
Male unemployment dropped to 3.8 percent during the period, compared with 4 percent in the previous quarter. Female unemployment also improved significantly, falling to 14.3 percent from 15 percent in the third quarter and 16.6 percent a year earlier, indicating steady progress in women’s employment outcomes.
Urban areas continued to experience higher joblessness, with unemployment reaching 9.7 percent, though this represented an improvement from 10.1 percent in the prior quarter. Rural unemployment declined further to 3.4 percent, reflecting strengthening labor market conditions outside major cities.
Despite the quarterly improvement, unemployment rose slightly on an annual basis, increasing by about 22,000 individuals compared with the same period in 2024.
Education levels among unemployed individuals remained elevated, highlighting structural labor market challenges. Approximately 82.1 percent of unemployed persons held intermediate, advanced, or university qualifications, while university graduates alone accounted for 45 percent of the unemployed population.
The data underscores Egypt’s gradual labor market recovery, although the high share of educated unemployed workers points to ongoing mismatches between labor supply and job creation.
