East African economies depend on informal jobs—but at a cost
Traders at a market in Uganda. Sub-Saharan Africa has the largest informal workforce in the world, with nearly 88 percent of workers operating outside the formal economy.
An expanding informal sector in the East African region could be keeping teeming masses of youth engaged. But that could be a long-term risk on economies by crippling government revenue collection, suppressing national productivity, and fuelling social instability.
A report by global rating agency Moody’s last week reveals that Sub-Saharan Africa has the largest informal workforce in the world, with nearly 88 percent of workers operating outside the formal economy.
