site.btaFewer Young Bulgarians Neither Working Nor Studying in 2023

The relative share of young Bulgarians who neither study nor work decreased in 2023 year-on-year, according to data from the National Statistical Institute (NSI) Labour Force Survey 2023, published on Friday.

The relative share of the population aged 15-29 not in education and training is 13.8%. In 2022, this share was 15.1%.

The unemployment rate for the 15-29 age group in 2023 and 2022 is stable at 7.9% and 8%, respectively. The unemployment rate in 2023 is 4.3%, up by 0.2% from 2022.

In 2023, the relative share of early leavers from education and training in the population aged 18 to 24 years declined to 9.3%, while in 2022 it was 10.5%.  

Some 132,400 people were unemployed in Bulgaria in 2023, most of them were men. Of all the unemployed, 14.4% had tertiary education, 53.8% had secondary education, and 31. 8% had primary education or below.

In 2023, the total number of people in employment was 2,931,900, of whom 53% were men. The service sector employed 1,898,400 people, or 64.8% of the workforce, the industry sector employed 867,100 (29.6%) and the agriculture, forestry and fishing sector 166,400 (5.7%).