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Download the file - United Nations Rule of Law

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ployment in developing countries: specifically, 47percent in <strong>the</strong> Middle East and North Africa; 51percent in Latin America; 71 percent in Asia, and72 percent in sub-Saharan Africa. If South Africais excluded, <strong>the</strong> share <strong>of</strong> informal employment innon-agricultural employment rises to 78 percentin sub-Saharan Africa; and if comparable datawere available for countries (o<strong>the</strong>r than India), inSouth Asia, <strong>the</strong> regional average for Asia wouldlikely be much higher.Some countries include informal employmentin agriculture in <strong>the</strong>ir estimates. Thissignificantly increases <strong>the</strong> proportion <strong>of</strong> informalemployment: from 83 percent <strong>of</strong> non-agriculturalemployment to 93 percent <strong>of</strong> total employment inIndia; from 55 to 62 percent in Mexico, and from28 to 34 percent in South Africa. 16The two main segments <strong>of</strong> informal employment,classified by employment status, are <strong>the</strong> self-employedand <strong>the</strong> wageworkers. The self-employedinclude employers, or owner-operators <strong>of</strong> informalenterprises who hire o<strong>the</strong>rs; own-account workers,or owner-operators in single-person units orfamily businesses/farms who do not hire o<strong>the</strong>rs,and unpaid contributing family workers, whoare family workers in family businesses or farmswithout pay.The wageworker segment consists largely <strong>of</strong>informal employees — those who are unprotectedin <strong>the</strong>ir work with a known employer that couldbe an informal or formal enterprise, a contractingagency, or a household; casual wage worker, orthose wage workers with no fixed employer whosell <strong>the</strong>ir labour on a daily or seasonal basis, andindustrial outworkers, who are sub-contractedto produce for a piece-rate from <strong>the</strong>ir homes orsmall workshops.Composition <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Informal EconomyIn all developing regions, self-employment comprisesa greater share <strong>of</strong> informal employment(outside <strong>of</strong> agriculture) than wage employment:specifically, self-employment represents 70percent <strong>of</strong> informal employment in sub-SaharanAfrica, 62 percent in North Africa, 60 percent inLatin America, and 59 percent in Asia. In China,it is estimated that between 1990 and 2004,urban informal employment increased by 125.55million people, which was 133 percent <strong>of</strong> allincreased employment. 17 Excluding South Africa,where black-owned businesses were prohibitedduring <strong>the</strong> apar<strong>the</strong>id era and have only recentlybegun to be recognised and reported, <strong>the</strong> share <strong>of</strong>self-employment in informal employment increasedto 81 percent in sub-Saharan Africa.Self-employment represents nearly one-third <strong>of</strong>total non-agricultural employment worldwide. It isless important in developed countries (12 percent<strong>of</strong> total non-agricultural employment) than indeveloping countries where it comprises as muchas 53 percent <strong>of</strong> non-agricultural employment insub-Saharan Africa, 44 percent in Latin America,32 percent in Asia, and 31 percent in NorthAfrica.Informal wage employment, including disguisedwage employment, is also significant in <strong>the</strong>developing world: comprising 30 to 40 percent <strong>of</strong>informal employment (outside <strong>of</strong> agriculture). 18Home-based workers and street vendors are two<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> largest sub-groups <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> informal workforce:with home-based workers being <strong>the</strong> morenumerous but street vendors <strong>the</strong> more visible <strong>of</strong><strong>the</strong> two. Toge<strong>the</strong>r <strong>the</strong>y represent 10-25 percent<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> non-agricultural workforce in developingcountries and over five percent <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> total workforcein developed countries.139

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