BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY'S RELATIONSHIP WITH SDG 8

SDG 8 is of particular significance for Rwanda, which recently announced its aspiration to transform its economy and become a middle-income country by 2035 and a high-income country by 2050, as part of its Vision 2050 Strategy (Rwanda’s Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning [RMFEP], 2023, p. 8). To realise these ambitions, Rwanda is currently focusing on the creation of decent jobs while promoting industrial development through its private sector, gradually reducing its economy’s reliance on the agricultural sector (RMFEP, 2023, pp. 9, 70; United Nations Partnership for Action on Green Economy [UNPAGE], 2026). The country has also demonstrated strong economic growth in recent years, as its real GDP grew by an impressive annual average of 7.9% between 2000 and 2018, while reaching a growth rate of 9.4% in 2025 (RMFEP, 2023, p. 70; World Bank, n.d.a).

Despite this strong performance, Rwanda is struggling to provide enough jobs for its population, as unemployment remains high and young people struggle to enter the labour market, while aggregate productivity remains low and much of the country’s economic production is generated by informal enterprises (World Bank, n.d.a; World Bank, 2026a)

CURRENT CHALLENGES AND RECENT DEVELOPMENTS

Rwanda’s economic growth of the last few years has been remarkable, but still too low with respect to the 7% target envisioned by SDG 8 for the least developed countries, as GDP per capita growth has remained below 7% on average throughout the last ten years (World Bank, n.d.b). Moreover, economic growth has failed to generate enough jobs for Rwanda’s growing working-age population. In 2024, 4.4 million people were employed out of a working-age population of approximately 8.3 million, while 780,000 people were unemployed, corresponding to an unemployment rate of about 15% (National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda [NISR], 2024, pp. 8-9). A significant number of people therefore remain out of productive employment, limiting Rwanda’s economic growth potential and acting as a major obstacle to achieving full and productive employment. 

Youth employment is a related concern, as younger generations struggle to find jobs. In 2024, only 2.3 million of Rwanda’s 3.7 million youths aged between 16 and 30 were employed, whereas more than one million were not in education, employment or training. A significant number of Rwandans do not finish their primary education, while insufficient job creation in the labour market deprives many of them of the opportunity to access decent employment (World Bank, 2026b).

Moreover, informal employment remains widespread, severely affecting the country’s ability to achieve SDG 8. In 2024, 82.3% of Rwanda’s working population was employed within the informal sector, with most of them working in market-oriented agricultural enterprises [NISR, 2024, p. 29). Workers within the informal economy face significant risks to their financial security and health. Employment within the informal economy is typically accompanied by precarious working conditions, unregulated working arrangements, and a complete lack of social and legal protection that leave most workers in an extremely vulnerable position (International Labour Organization, 2015).

Another major obstacle to achieving SDG 8 is the economy's low productivity, as over 70% of Rwanda’s workforce depends on the agricultural sector, marked by low productivity and significant decent work deficits (UNPAGE, 2026). Greater investments in developing the population’s human capital through better education and more effective training programmes would foster the development of other increasingly important sectors, promoting economic growth and increasing labour productivity growth (World Bank, 2026).

LIST OF REFERENCES AND USEFUL LINKS

International Labour Organization. (2015, March 23). Informal economy: a hazardous activity. Retrieved September 7, 2026, from https://www.ilo.org/resource/other/informal-economy-hazardous-activity

National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda. (2024). Labour Force Survey: Annual Report 2024. https://statistics.gov.rw/sites/default/files/documents/2025-05/Annual%20Report%20LFS%202024.pdf

Rwanda’s Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning. (2023). 2023 Rwanda Voluntary National Review. United Nations High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development. https://hlpf.un.org/sites/default/files/vnrs/2023/VNR%20Rwanda%20Report.pdf

United Nations Partnership for Action on Green Economy. (2026, June 16). Growing, Greening and Creating Jobs in Rwanda. Retrieved September 7, 2026, from https://www.un-page.org/news/growing-greening-and-creating-jobs-in-rwanda/

World Bank. (2026a, April 1). Rwanda’s Economy Registers Robust Growth in 2024 Despite Global Challenges. Retrieved September 7, 2026, from https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2025/04/01/rwandas-afe-economy-registers-robust-growth-in-2024-despite-global-challenges

World Bank. (2026b, February 23). Rwanda’s Skills Training Delivers Jobs and Opportunities for Youth. Retrieved September 7, 2026, from https://www.worldbank.org/en/results/2026/02/23/rwanda-s-skills-training-delivers-jobs-and-opportunity-for-youth

World Bank. (n.d.a). Overview: Rwanda. Retrieved September 7, 2026, from https://www.worldbank.org/ext/en/country/rwanda

World Bank. (n.d.b). GDP per capita growth (annual %) - Rwanda [Data file]. World Development Indicators. Retrieved September 7, 2026, from https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.PCAP.KD.ZG?end=2025&locations=RW&start=1961&view=chart