Women in Djibouti face barriers that can make it harder to find stable jobs and earn an income. Although Djibouti has laws supporting equal pay, there is not enough recent data to calculate a reliable direct gender wage gap. Instead, available data show differences in employment and informal work between women and men. These differences can help show some of the larger challenges women face in the labor market.

The World Bank’s Women, Business and the Law data gave Djibouti a score of 87.5 out of 100 in 2025 for its legal framework on pay. This score measures whether certain laws supporting equal pay are in place. It does not measure how much women and men actually earn or whether employers consistently enforce equal-pay laws. Therefore, the score shows the country’s legal framework but cannot be used as a measurement of Djibouti’s actual gender wage gap.

Unemployment

One challenge facing women in Djibouti is unemployment. According to the UN Women Data Hub, the unemployment rate for women ages 15 and older was 35.9% in 2017, compared with 22.1% for men. These figures are from 2017, so they should not be treated as current 2026 unemployment rates. However, they show that women faced higher unemployment than men in the available data.

Women also had a higher rate of informal employment. In 2017, 64.9% of women’s non-agricultural employment was informal, compared with 45.3% for men. Informal employment can make it harder for workers to access protections and stable employment conditions. More recent information is needed to determine how these differences have changed.

The lack of current gender data is another challenge. UN Women reports that Djibouti has gaps in important gender-related data, including information about the gender pay gap. Without reliable and updated information about wages and employment, it is difficult to measure the size of the pay gap or track changes over time.

What the Data Can Tell Us

The available information does not provide a reliable current percentage for the gender wage gap in Djibouti. However, the differences in unemployment and informal employment show that women and men do not have the same experiences in the labor market.

The World Bank’s 2026 Djibouti Economic Monitor also reports that unemployment is particularly high among women and young people and that informal employment remains widespread. The report uses evidence from Djibouti’s first nationally representative Labor Force Survey, providing newer information about the country’s labor market.

Collecting more information about women’s and men’s wages, occupations, working hours and access to different types of employment could make it easier to understand pay differences in Djibouti. Better data could also help policymakers identify areas where women face the greatest barriers.

A Program Supporting Women’s Economic Opportunities

One example of an initiative addressing women’s economic opportunities in Djibouti is the World Bank-supported Djibouti Support for Women and Youth Entrepreneurship Project. The project was approved in 2018 with $15 million in financing. It aimed to improve economic opportunities for women and young entrepreneurs by supporting new businesses, entrepreneurship training and access to financing.

The project worked with entrepreneurs through training, business-development services, grants and business-plan competitions. By the time of its completion, 2,359 beneficiaries had received grants, with women making up 60% of grant recipients. The project also provided 4,938 training-completion certificates and supported the registration of 740 new businesses. Women accounted for 55% of the entrepreneurs accessing project-supported services who registered new businesses.

These results show how programs can address some of the barriers that limit women’s participation in the economy. The project focused on helping women gain business skills and access to financial resources rather than directly measuring or closing a gender wage gap. Since Djibouti still lacks reliable direct pay-gap data, programs like this provide one way to expand women’s economic opportunities while better employment data is collected.

Looking Ahead

The gender wage gap in Djibouti cannot currently be measured reliably because important wage data are missing. However, available employment data show differences between women and men in unemployment and informal employment.

Improving gender-related labor data would make it easier to identify pay differences and track progress. At the same time, programs that provide women with business training, financing and employment opportunities can help address some of the barriers they face in the labor market.

Djibouti’s legal framework also provides a starting point. The country received an 87.5 out of 100 score for its legal framework on pay in the World Bank’s 2025 data, but that score does not show whether women and men actually receive equal wages. Combining legal protections, programs that expand women’s economic opportunities and better data collection could provide a clearer picture of women’s employment and pay equality in Djibouti.

– Neha Veerepalli

Neha is based in Redmond, WA, USA and focuses on Good News and Celebs for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Flickr