Which Sector Employs the Most Women?

Based on data from the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) in the 2016 National Labor Force Survey (Sakernas), the number of working women was approximately 45.5 million. The Agriculture, Forestry, Hunting, and Fisheries sector remained the largest employer of women, absorbing 13.7 million or more than 30 percent of female workers. This was followed by the wholesale and retail trade sector with 10.4 million workers, and then the manufacturing industry sector with 6.9 million female workers.

Generally, the total Indonesian population in 2016, based on population projections from 2010-2035, was estimated at 259.23 million people, with a working-age population of 189.10 million. However, only 118.41 million people, or about 62.6 percent, were absorbed into the workforce. The Agriculture, Forestry, Hunting, and Fisheries sector remained the largest employer, absorbing 37.77 million people (31.90 percent) of workers, while the Electricity, Gas, and Water sector absorbed the fewest workers, only 357,000 people (0.30 percent).