According to data from the Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan, nearly 60 percent of the country's population is not considered active participants in the labor market. This was reported by Upl.uz.
This means that 22.5 million people are not engaged in the labor market, including school students, pensioners, and persons with disabilities. At the same time, according to the Ministry of Employment and Poverty Reduction, as of July 1, 2025, 14.6 million people are officially employed in the country, with the unemployment rate amounting to 800 thousand people.
Among the population outside the labor market, it is significant that 12 million people are of working age. This indicates that approximately six out of every ten people in the country's population are not active in the labor market.
While the population of Uzbekistan continues to grow, especially the share of young people is increasing. As experts emphasize, demographic growth may increase pressure on the labor market in the future.
This, on one hand, creates great opportunities for economic growth, and on the other hand, poses the issue of creating new jobs as an urgent challenge for the government. According to analyses by the Central Bank, although the growth rate of the working-age population is relatively slow, the demand for labor is increasing significantly.
This imbalance directly affects employment levels, wages, and the overall economic situation. For example, in 2022, the growth rate of the working-age population (15–64 years) was 0.8 percent, while in the first quarter of 2025, this indicator reached 1.4 percent, showing an acceleration in growth.
Thus, effective measures need to be taken to address the problems arising in the labor market.
