South Africa's Informal Economy: A Statistical Profile

This report presents a statistical profile of informal employment in South Africa from 2005 to 2007, using September Labour Force Surveys. In particular, the report uses descriptive analysis to identify the extent and composition of informal employment and its recent trends. It describes the nature of informal work in South Africa and highlights heterogeneity in the types of work activities, the industries of work and the returns to informal work. It also attempts to identify the economic value generated by the informal economy. A key contribution of the report is that it analyses South Africa’s informal economy, not only at the national level but disaggregated by the metropolitan (metro) status of areas. The main findings of the report are summarised below.