Markets

Ranked: Number of Agricultural Workers by Country

Published

2 months ago

August 3, 2023

Airi (Iris) Ryu

Featured Creator

Article/Editing:

Bruno Venditti

agricultural workers in the most populated countries

Ranked: Number of Agricultural Workers by Country

Agriculture has long been the backbone of human civilization, providing sustenance and livelihood to billions of people across the globe.

As of 2021, an estimated 27% of the global workforce was employed in agriculture, though the sector represents only 4% of global GDP.

The graphic above uses 2019 employment and population data from the World Bank to rank the distribution of agricultural workers in the world’s most populated countries.

Asia and Africa Have the Most Agricultural Workers

Being the most populous countries, India and China lead the ranking with 272 million and 229 million people employed in agriculture, respectively:

Rank	Country	Agricultural Workers (2019)	% of Total Workers
1	🇮🇳 India	272M	43%
2	🇨🇳 China	229M	25%
3	🇪🇹 Ethiopia	59M	66%
4	🇮🇩 Indonesia	51M	29%
5	🇵🇰 Pakistan	40M	36%
6	🇳🇬 Nigeria	40M	35%
7	🇨🇩 DRC	36M	63%
8	🇧🇩 Bangladesh	36M	39%
9	🇹🇿 Tanzania	32M	65%
10	🇻🇳 Vietnam	27M	38%
11	🇰🇪 Kenya	19M	53%
12	🇲🇲 Myanmar	16M	50%
13	🇹🇭 Thailand	15M	32%
14	🇵🇭 Philippines	15M	23%
15	🇧🇷 Brazil	11M	9%
16	🇲🇽 Mexico	9M	12%
17	🇪🇬 Egypt	8M	20%
18	🇹🇷 Türkiye	7M	18%
19	🇮🇷 Iran	6M	18%
20	🇷🇺 Russia	5M	6%
21	🇺🇸 U.S.	3M	2%
22	🇯🇵 Japan	3M	4%
23	🇫🇷 France	0.9M	3%
24	🇩🇪 Germany	0.6M	1%
25	🇬🇧 UK	0.4M	1%

Though countries in Africa have fewer agricultural workers, they have a far greater share of agriculture in employment. Ethiopia (66%) and Tanzania (65%) had the highest share of agricultural workers amongst the most populated countries, with other low income and lower-middle income African countries close behind.

In fact, McKinsey estimates that more than 60% of sub-Saharan Africa’s entire population consists of smallholder farmers, with about 23% of sub-Saharan Africa’s GDP coming directly from agriculture.

In contrast, agriculture represents significantly less employment in high-income countries. The U.S. and Japan both have an estimated 3 million agricultural workers, accounting for only 3% and 4% of the total employed population, respectively.

In terms of gender balance, women on average represent 37% of all agricultural workers, with a majority share in just 20 countries within Africa and Asia.

Evolution of Agricultural Jobs Over Time

Over the past century, agricultural workers have declined in number due to technological advances, urban migration, land use changes, and economic diversification.

Source: FAO

However, they still represent a quarter of the global workforce and even with the modernization of agriculture, workers are still necessary to meet a growing demand.

For instance, a study in Bioscience has suggested that agricultural production will need to increase by at least 25% to meet the food demands of the world’s population by 2050.

This article was published as a part of Visual Capitalist's Creator Program, which features data-driven visuals from some of our favorite Creators around the world.

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Jobs

Visualizing the Most Sought-After Entry Level Jobs in 2023

Some jobs need a degree, while others don’t. Here are the top 20 most sought-after entry level jobs with and without a degree.

Published

4 days ago

September 29, 2023

Freny Fernandes

The Most Sought-After Entry Level Jobs of 2023

In the fast-paced realm of job hunting, staying ahead of the curve is crucial. And if you are an entry-level job applicant, the pressure is a notch higher.

New entrants in any job market today compete with groundbreaking technology like ChatGPT in addition to their peers. In the United States, these applicants have to also wade through an uncertain labor market, inflation, and long lists of job requirements.

Indeed.com has identified the most sought-after entry level positions for applicants both with and without a degree in the U.S., and the year-on-year growth of these job postings.

Most Sought-After Entry-Level Jobs With a Degree

As the U.S. job market recovers from its pandemic slump, some careers are now booming. This in turn has opened up numerous opportunities for entry-level job applicants.

Rank	Job Title	Average Annual Salary	Change in Postings (2022‒2023)
1	Outside Sales Representative	$60,000	+258%
2	Transportation Coordinator	$47,500	+227%
3	Quality Auditor	$84,500	+131%
4	Accounting	$52,000	+125%
5	Tax Preparer	$67,500	+123%
6	Loan Processor	$55,000	+100%
7	Retention Specialist	$50,000	+100%
8	Network Operations Technician	$85,500	+94%
9	Mental Health Manager	$42,000	+93%
10	Speech-Language Pathologist	$60,000	+84%
11	Geotechnical Engineer	$65,000	+80%
12	Patient Access Manager	$90,000	+77%
13	HR Coordinator	$67,500	+75%
14	Lead Generation Specialist	$62,500	+73%
15	Design Coordinator	$55,000	+73%
16	Pharmaceutical Sales Representative	$74,378	+71%
17	Behavioral Therapist	$50,000	+68%
18	Special Events Coordinator	$54,000	+67%
19	IT Engineer	$92,500	+67%
20	Structural Engineer	$90,000	+63%

The demand for sales jobs multiplied this year as customer-facing businesses slowly returned to their pre-pandemic levels.

At the top of this list is the job for an Outside Sales Representative. Paying upwards of $60,000, postings for this job have grown by over 250% in a year, making it the most sought-after position for applicants with a degree.

The healthcare industry has secured its place in the top ranks too. Careers including mental health case managers, speech pathologists, behavioral therapists, and patient access managers dominate the Top 20 list.

Let’s not forget about the tech sector. While entry-level network technicians can earn upwards of $85,000 on average, while IT engineers are paid an entry package of over $90,000.

Most Sought-After Entry-Level Jobs Without a Degree

Nearly 65% of the U.S. working population does not have a four-year degree. However, millions of these workers continue to be highly skilled across professions and have a shot at some of the most sought-after entry level jobs in the country.

Rank	Job Title	Average Annual Salary	Change in Postings (2022‒2023)
1	Inventory Manager	$59,000	+189%
2	Auto Body Technician	$82,500	+100%
3	Environmental Health and Safety Specialist	$65,000	+100%
4	Salon Manager	$41,000	+95%
5	Drafting Technician	$50,000	+94%
6	Business Analyst	$72,500	+82%
7	Sheet Metal Mechanic	$62,140	+67%
8	Aircraft Maintenance Technician	$57,500	+64%
9	Catering Manager	$47,500	+56%
10	Transportation/Logistics Coordinator	$62,500	+53%
11	Route Sales Representative	$50,000	+51%
12	Rental Agent	$45,520	+50%
13	Distribution Center Coordinator	$52,500	+47%
14	General Maintenance Technician	$40,650	+46%
15	Patient Care Coordinator	$43,152	+44%
16	Forestry Technician	$45,760	+43%
17	Relationship Banker	$43,576	+43%
18	Field Sales Representative	$57,018	+42%
19	Park Ranger	$45,912	+42%
20	Warehouse Receiver	$45,000	+39%

One example of this job is that of an Inventory Manager. The demand for skilled inventory managers in warehouses and companies post-pandemic has doubled the position’s job share in a year.

One of the highest paying non-degree jobs in this list—Auto Body Technician—can fetch highly-skilled entry-level workers a salary of $82,000 per year.

These jobs don’t seem to require a degree according to Indeed. However, the rising competition for these positions might give the upper edge to applicants with one, especially for jobs on the list such as Business Analyst and Relationship Banker.