KENYA NATIONAL BUREAU OF STATISTICS

QUARTERLY LABOUR FORCE REPORT

Quarter 4
October – December, 2022

February, 2023

Enquiries
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Table of Contents
List of Tables .........................................................................................................................................iii
List of Figures ........................................................................................................................................iii
1. Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 1
2. Key Highlights ................................................................................................................................... 1
3. Labour Force Participation ................................................................................................................ 3
4. Employment ....................................................................................................................................... 3
4.1 Employment to Population Ratio .................................................................................. 3
5. Labour Underutilization .................................................................................................................... 5
5.1 Unemployment Rate [LU1] ............................................................................................ 5
5.2 Combined Rate of Unemployment and Potential Labour Force [LU3] ....................... 5
5.3 Unemployment and Time Related Underemployment [LU2] ..................................... 5
5.4 Long Term Unemployment Rate ................................................................................... 5
6. Youth not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET) ............................................................ 8
7. Persons not in the Labour Force ....................................................................................................... 8
Appendices ........................................................................................................................................... 11
Appendix 1: Survey Design and Methodology .................................................................. 11
Appendix 2: Concepts and Definitions .............................................................................. 14

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List of Tables
Table 1: Key Labour Market Indicators ................................................................................................ 1
Table 2: Labour Participation Rates by Age Cohorts ........................................................................... 4
Table 3: Employed and Employment to Population Ratios ................................................................. 4
Table 4: Unemployment (strict definition) by Age Cohorts [LU1] ..................................................... 6
Table 5: Combined rate of Unemployment and Potential Labour Force by Age Cohorts [LU3] ...... 6
Table 6: Unemployment and Time Related Underemployment by Age Cohorts [LU2] .................... 7
Table 7: Long Term Unemployment by Age Cohorts .......................................................................... 7
Table 8: Youth Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET) ................................................. 9
Table 9a: Persons Outside the Labour force by Age Cohorts .............................................................. 9
Table 9b: Persons Outside the Labour force1 by Age Cohorts .......................................................... 10
Table 10: Sample Allocation for the 4th Quarter of 2022 KCHS ........................................................ 13

List of Figures
Figure 1: Labour Underutilization Framework .................................................................................... 1
Figure 2: Quarterly Trends of Selected Key Indicators of the Labour Market ................................... 2

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1. Introduction
The Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) is a modular survey under the Kenya
Continuous Household Survey (KCHS). The survey is designed to provide data on a wide
range of socio-economic indicators on a quarterly and annual basis. Data collection for the
KCHS was undertaken for 24 days per quarter. The QLFS module collected information
about the Kenya labour market activities for the population aged 5 years and above. The
survey results were uprated using estimation weights based on the 2019 Population and
Housing census.
This quarterly release analyses the labour market situation for the population aged 15 to 64
years for the period October to December 2022. Topics covered include labour Force
Participation Rates, Employment, Unemployment, Labour Underutilization, Youth Not in
Education, Employment or Training (NEET) and Inactivity. The statistics are measured
based on the labour force framework as guided by the International Labour Organization
(ILO) standard for labour market statistics for international comparability. Indicators are
compared between the current quarter and the corresponding quarter of the previous year
and the immediate previous quarter. No adjustments are made for seasonality and therefore
some of the variations may be due to seasonality factors.

2. Key Highlights
Table 1: Key Labour Market Indicators

Q ua rter 4 , Q ua rter 3 , Q ua rter 4 ,

I ndic a to r 2021 2022 2022
Population (15-64).................................................................................. 28,312,936 28,938,083 29,066,237
Labour Force............................................................................................ 18,716,433 19,113,051 19,398,165
Extended Labour Force.......................................................................... 20,363,810 20,992,671 21,411,026
Employed.................................................................................................. 17,660,616 18,104,662 18,438,164
Employment/Population Ratio (%)...................................................... 62.4 62.6 63.4
1
Unemployed …............................ 1,055,816 1,008,389 960,001
Unemployment Rate [LU1](%)............................................................. 5.6 5.3 4.9
2
Unemployed ….............................. 2,703,194 2,888,009 2,972,862
Unemployment Rate [LU3](%)............................................................. 13.3 13.8 13.9
Long-Term Unemployed....................................................................... 640,925 423,397 626,279
Long-Term Unemployed (%)................................................................ 3.4 2.2 3.2
Not in Labor Force (Inactive)................................................................ 9,596,503 9,825,032 9,668,072
Not in Labor Force (Inactive)3 … 7,949,126 7,945,412 7,655,211
Labour Force Participation (%)............................................................. 66.1 66.0 66.7
Labour Under Utilization4 …… 2,143,560 1,989,206 3,481,968
Labour Under Utilization (LU2)............................................................ 11.5 10.6 18.6
Youth (15-34yrs)..................................................................................... 17,895,718 18,290,519 18,371,526
Youth Not in Employment, Education or Training (NEET)............ 3,846,526 3,718,277 3,499,114
NEET Rate................................................................................................ 21.5 20.3 19.0
1
Using strict definition of unemployment (see appendix 2)
2
Includes the unemployed under the strict definition and the potential Labour Force (see Appendix 2)
3
Excludes potential Labour Force (see appendix 2)
4
Comprise the time related underemployment and the Unemployed

1
Figure 1: Labour Underutilization Framework

Working Age
Population
(15 - 64)

Persons Outside the

Labour Force
Labour Force

Other Persons
Persons in Persons in Potential Labour
Outside the Labour
Employment Unemployment Force
Force

Persons on time
Other Persons in
related under
employment
Employment

Labour Underutilization

Extended Labour Force

Figure 2: Quarterly Trends of Selected Key Indicators of the Labour Market

68.0 30.0

66.0
25.0

NEET, Under Utilisation &

64.0

Unemployment Rates
20.0
Employment Ratio &

Participation Rate

62.0
Labour Force

15.0
60.0

10.0
58.0

5.0
56.0

54.0 0.0
Quarter 4, 2021 Quarter 1, 2022 Quarter 2, 2022 Quarter 3, 2022 Quarter 4, 2022

Employment/Population Ratio (%) Labour Force Participation (%)

Unemployment Rate [LU1](%) Unemployment Rate [LU3](%)
Long-Term Unemployed (%) Labour Under Utilisation (LU2)
NEET Rate

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3. Labour Force Participation
Table 2 presents the labour force participation rates by age cohorts. The participation rate
was 66.7 per cent during the fourth quarter of the year compared to 66.0 per cent registered
in the previous quarter. Similarly, this was a 0.6 per cent increase relative to 66.1 per cent
registered in the same quarter of 2021.

4. Employment

4.1 Employment to Population Ratio

Table 3 shows the distribution of the employed population and employment to population
ratios. The survey revealed that the overall employment to population ratio in the country,
for the working age population (15-64 years), was 63.4 per cent in the fourth quarter of
2022 compared to 62.6 per cent recorded in the previous quarter, and 62.4 per cent recorded
in the same quarter of 2021.

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Table 2: Labour Participation Rates by Age Cohorts

Quarter 4, 2021 Quarter 3, 2022 Quarter 4, 2022 Change

Labo ur To tal Labo ur To tal Labo ur To tal Qrt4 , 2 0 2 2 / Qrt4 , 2 0 2 2 /
Age Fo rce Po pulatio n Rate Fo rce Po pulatio n Rate Fo rce Po pulatio n Rate Qrt3 , 2 0 2 2 Qrt4 , 2 0 2 1
15-19 894,934 5,534,297 16.2 642,950 5,656,741 11.4 937,913 5,681,787 16.5 5.1 0.3
20-24 2,483,730 4,635,315 53.6 2,379,930 4,737,443 50.2 2,720,443 4,758,427 57.2 6.9 3.6
25-29 3,133,366 4,009,805 78.1 3,206,704 4,098,163 78.2 3,183,615 4,116,315 77.3 -0.9 -0.8
30-34 3,033,896 3,716,301 81.6 3,211,157 3,798,173 84.5 3,140,882 3,814,997 82.3 -2.2 0.7
35-39 2,406,613 2,757,188 87.3 2,534,580 2,818,175 89.9 2,423,637 2,830,654 85.6 -4.3 -1.7
40-44 2,059,961 2,353,886 87.5 2,207,701 2,405,975 91.8 2,131,875 2,416,628 88.2 -3.5 0.7
45-49 1,696,494 1,862,766 91.1 1,745,338 1,903,993 91.7 1,719,163 1,912,423 89.9 -1.8 -1.2
50-54 1,249,659 1,364,572 91.6 1,297,443 1,394,751 93.0 1,295,015 1,400,927 92.4 -0.6 0.9
55-59 1,014,043 1,168,554 86.8 1,088,300 1,194,345 91.1 1,071,583 1,199,634 89.3 -1.8 2.5
60-64 743,736 910,252 81.7 798,949 930,326 85.9 774,040 934,446 82.8 -3.0 1.1
To tal 1 8 ,7 1 6 ,4 3 3 2 8 ,3 1 2 ,9 3 6 6 6 .1 1 9 ,1 1 3 ,0 5 1 2 8 ,9 3 8 ,0 8 3 6 6 .0 1 9 ,3 9 8 ,1 6 5 2 9 ,0 6 6 ,2 3 7 6 6 .7 0 .7 0 .6

Table 3: Employed and Employment to Population Ratios

Quarter 4, 2021 Quarter 3, 2022 Quarter 4, 2022 Change

To tal To tal To tal Qrt4 , 2 0 2 2 / Qrt4 , 2 0 2 2 /
Age E mplo yed P o pulatio n Ratio E mplo yed P o pulatio n Ratio E mplo yed P o pulatio n Ratio Qrt3 , 2 0 2 2 Qrt4 , 2 0 2 1
15-19 819,977 5,534,297 14.8 496,958 5,656,741 8.8 835,263 5,681,787 14.7 5.9 -0.1
20-24 2,122,320 4,635,315 45.8 2,043,013 4,737,443 43.1 2,295,970 4,758,427 48.3 5.2 2.5
25-29 2,803,973 4,009,805 69.9 2,993,577 4,098,163 73.0 2,997,055 4,116,315 72.8 -0.2 2.9
30-34 2,945,150 3,716,301 79.2 3,083,752 3,798,173 81.2 3,047,035 3,814,997 79.9 -1.3 0.7
35-39 2,277,826 2,757,188 82.6 2,472,753 2,818,175 87.7 2,369,061 2,830,654 83.7 -4.0 1.1
40-44 2,038,108 2,353,886 86.6 2,178,907 2,405,975 90.6 2,085,360 2,416,628 86.3 -4.3 -0.3
45-49 1,661,237 1,862,766 89.2 1,685,734 1,903,993 88.5 1,696,947 1,912,423 88.7 0.2 -0.5
50-54 1,237,459 1,364,572 90.7 1,291,105 1,394,751 92.6 1,278,520 1,400,927 91.3 -1.3 0.6
55-59 1,010,830 1,168,554 86.5 1,068,661 1,194,345 89.5 1,065,795 1,199,634 88.8 -0.7 2.3
60-64 743,736 910,252 81.7 790,203 930,326 84.9 767,159 934,446 82.1 -2.8 0.4
To tal 1 7 ,6 6 0 ,6 1 6 2 8 ,3 1 2 ,9 3 6 6 2 .4 1 8 ,1 0 4 ,6 6 2 2 8 ,9 3 8 ,0 8 3 6 2 .6 1 8 ,4 3 8 ,1 6 4 2 9 ,0 6 6 ,2 3 7 6 3 .4 0 .8 1 .0

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5. Labour Underutilization
This section presents information on labour underutilization measured using
unemployment, time-related underemployment, long term unemployment and potential
labour force (all definitions are in Appendix 2). The results presented in Table 4, indicate a
decline in unemployment. Similarly, a decrease in underemployment was also witnessed
in the fourth quarter of 2022.

5.1 Unemployment Rate [LU1]

As indicated in Table 4, the unemployment rate, measured based on the strict definition of
not working, seeking work in the last four weeks and available to work, was 4.9 per cent
in the fourth quarter of 2022, compared to 5.3 per cent registered in the previous quarter
and 5.6 per cent recorded in the fourth quarter of 2021.

5.2 Combined Rate of Unemployment and Potential Labour Force [LU3]

Table 5 presents the combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force (LU3)
measured as either unavailable jobseekers or available potential jobseekers. As shown in
the Table, LU3 for the fourth quarter of 2022 was 13.9 per cent, compared to 13.3 per cent
recorded in the same quarter of 2021, this was, however, a 0.1 percentage point decrease
from that recorded in the third quarter of 2022.

5.3 Unemployment and Time Related Underemployment [LU2]

As shown in Table 6, the Labour Underutilization (LU2), which is the combined rate of
time-related underemployment and unemployment increased to 9.0 per cent in the fourth
quarter from 10.4 per cent recorded in the third quarter 2022. The number of people who
were time related underemployed decreased from 980,817 in the third quarter of 2022 to
780,983 in the fourth quarter of 2022. Further analysis shows a decline in LU2 of 2.5
percentage points over the corresponding quarter in 2021.

5.4 Long Term Unemployment Rate

Table 7 presents details of the long-term unemployment rates. The results indicate that the
long-term unemployment rate was 3.2 per cent, which was an increase from the 2.2 per
cent rate recorded in the previous quarter. The youth aged 20 - 24 continued to have the
highest rate of long-term unemployment which stood at 9.9 per cent.

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Table 4: Unemployment (strict definition) by Age Cohorts [LU1]
Quarter 4, 2021 Quarter 3, 2022 Quarter 4, 2022 Change
To tal To tal To tal
Labo ur Labo ur Labo ur Qrt4 , 2 0 2 2 / Qrt4 , 2 0 2 2 /
Age U nemplo yed Fo rce Rate U nemplo yed Fo rce Rate U nemplo yed Fo rce Rate Qrt3 , 2 0 2 2 Qrt4 , 2 0 2 1
15-19 74,957 894,934 8.4 145,992 642,950 22.7 102,650 937,913 10.9 -11.8 2.5
20-24 361,411 2,483,730 14.6 336,916 2,379,930 14.2 424,474 2,720,443 15.6 1.4 1.0
25-29 329,393 3,133,366 10.5 213,127 3,206,704 6.6 186,560 3,183,615 5.9 -0.7 -4.6
30-34 88,746 3,033,896 2.9 127,405 3,211,157 4.0 93,847 3,140,882 3.0 -1.0 0.1
35-39 128,786 2,406,613 5.4 61,827 2,534,580 2.4 54,576 2,423,637 2.3 -0.1 -3.1
40-44 21,853 2,059,961 1.1 28,794 2,207,701 1.3 46,515 2,131,875 2.2 0.9 1.1
45-49 35,257 1,696,494 2.1 59,604 1,745,338 3.4 22,215 1,719,163 1.3 -2.1 -0.8
50-54 12,200 1,249,659 1.0 6,338 1,297,443 0.5 16,496 1,295,015 1.3 0.8 0.3
55-59 3,213 1,014,043 0.3 19,639 1,088,300 1.8 5,788 1,071,583 0.5 -1.3 0.2
60-64 0 743,736 0.0 8,746 798,949 1.1 6,881 774,040 0.9 -0.2 0.9
To tal 1 ,0 5 5 ,8 1 6 1 8 ,7 1 6 ,4 3 3 5 .6 1 ,0 0 8 ,3 8 9 1 9 ,1 1 3 ,0 5 1 5 .3 9 6 0 ,0 0 1 1 9 ,3 9 8 ,1 6 5 4 .9 (0 .4 ) (0 .7 )

Table 5: Combined rate of Unemployment and Potential Labour Force by Age Cohorts [LU3]
Quarter 4, 2021 Quarter 3, 2022 Quarter 4, 2022 Change
E xtended E xtended E xtended
Labo ur Labo ur Labo ur Qrt4 , 2 0 2 2 / Qrt4 , 2 0 2 2 /
Age U nemplo yed Fo rce 1 Rate U nemplo yed Fo rce 1 Rate U nemplo yed Fo rce 1 Rate Qrt3 , 2 0 2 2 Qrt4 , 2 0 2 1
15-19 240,130 1,060,108 22.7 425,540 922,498 46.1 349,328 1,184,591 29.5 -16.6 6.8
20-24 832,711 2,955,031 28.2 884,248 2,927,261 30.2 1,004,755 3,300,725 30.4 0.2 2.2
25-29 737,110 3,541,082 20.8 571,449 3,565,026 16.0 537,685 3,534,740 15.2 -0.8 -5.6
30-34 335,184 3,280,333 10.2 397,887 3,481,638 11.4 417,493 3,464,528 12.1 0.7 1.9
35-39 241,134 2,518,960 9.6 192,001 2,664,755 7.2 234,698 2,603,759 9.0 1.8 -0.6
40-44 140,378 2,178,486 6.4 116,876 2,295,783 5.1 175,578 2,260,938 7.8 2.7 1.4
45-49 82,832 1,744,069 4.7 125,303 1,811,037 6.9 103,416 1,800,364 5.7 -1.2 1.0
50-54 28,345 1,265,804 2.2 64,624 1,355,728 4.8 60,342 1,338,862 4.5 -0.3 2.3
55-59 36,365 1,047,195 3.5 67,574 1,136,235 5.9 60,460 1,126,255 5.4 -0.5 1.9
60-64 29,005 772,742 3.8 42,506 832,709 5.1 29,105 796,264 3.7 -1.4 -0.1
To tal 2 ,7 0 3 ,1 9 4 2 0 ,3 6 3 ,8 1 0 1 3 .3 2 ,8 8 8 ,0 0 9 2 0 ,9 9 2 ,6 7 1 1 3 .8 2 ,9 7 2 ,8 6 2 2 1 ,4 1 1 ,0 2 6 1 3 .9 0 .1 0 .6
1
Includes Potential Labour Force

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Table 6: Unemployment and Time Related Underemployment by Age Cohorts [LU2]
Quarter 4, 2021 Quarter 3, 2022 Quarter 4, 2022 Change
Time Labo ur Time Labo ur Time Labo ur Qrt4 , Qrt4 ,
related To tal U nder - related To tal U nder - related To tal U nder - 2022/ 2022/
U nder U nemp- Labo ur U tilizatio n U nder U nemp- Labo ur U tilizatio n U nder U nemp- Labo ur U tilizatio n Qrt3 , Qrt4 ,
Age E mplo yed lo yed Fo rce [LU 2 ] E mplo yed lo yed Fo rce [LU 2 ] E mplo yed lo yed Fo rce [LU 2 ] 2022 2021
15-19 46,562 74,957 894,934 13.6 37,567 145,992 642,950 28.5 38,479 102,650 937,913 15.0 -13.5 1.4
20-24 146,900 361,411 2,483,730 20.5 167,170 336,916 2,379,930 21.2 169,674 424,474 2,720,443 21.8 0.6 1.3
25-29 177,799 329,393 3,133,366 16.2 155,727 213,127 3,206,704 11.5 119,529 186,560 3,183,615 9.6 -1.9 -6.6
30-34 184,960 88,746 3,033,896 9.0 152,073 127,405 3,211,157 8.7 164,960 93,847 3,140,882 8.2 -0.5 -0.8
35-39 119,847 128,786 2,406,613 10.3 111,411 61,827 2,534,580 6.8 87,415 54,576 2,423,637 5.9 -0.9 -4.4
40-44 113,818 21,853 2,059,961 6.6 123,244 28,794 2,207,701 6.9 56,115 46,515 2,131,875 4.8 -2.1 -1.8
45-49 118,023 35,257 1,696,494 9.0 77,696 59,604 1,745,338 7.9 75,538 22,215 1,719,163 5.7 -2.2 -3.3
50-54 84,359 12,200 1,249,659 7.7 66,923 6,338 1,297,443 5.6 31,747 16,496 1,295,015 3.7 -1.9 -4.0
55-59 56,879 3,213 1,014,043 5.9 60,677 19,639 1,088,300 7.4 21,896 5,788 1,071,583 2.6 -4.8 -3.3
60-64 38,596 0 743,736 5.2 28,329 8,746 798,949 4.6 15,630 6,881 774,040 2.9 -1.7 -2.3
To tal 1 ,0 8 7 ,7 4 4 1 ,0 5 5 ,8 1 6 1 8 ,7 1 6 ,4 3 3 1 1 .5 9 8 0 ,8 1 7 1 ,0 0 8 ,3 8 9 1 9 ,1 1 3 ,0 5 1 1 0 .4 7 8 0 ,9 8 3 9 6 0 ,0 0 1 1 9 ,3 9 8 ,1 6 5 9 .0 -1 .4 -2 .5

Table 7: Long Term Unemployment by Age Cohorts

Quarter 4, 2021 Quarter 3, 2022 Quarter 4, 2022 Change

Lo ng Term Labo ur Lo ng Term Labo ur Lo ng Term Labo ur Qrt4 , 2 0 2 2 / Qrt4 , 2 0 2 2 /
Age U nemplo yed Fo rce Rate U nemplo yed Fo rce Rate U nemplo yed Fo rce Rate Qrt3 , 2 0 2 2 Qrt4 , 2 0 2 1
15-19 39,511 894,934 4.4 20,416 642,950 3.2 59,781 937,913 6.4 3.2 2.0
20-24 262,424 2,483,730 10.6 141,645 2,379,930 6.0 268,115 2,720,443 9.9 3.9 - 0.7
25-29 206,780 3,133,366 6.6 94,421 3,206,704 2.9 136,084 3,183,615 4.3 1.4 - 2.3
30-34 59,267 3,033,896 2.0 89,598 3,211,157 2.8 64,133 3,140,882 2.0 - 0.8 -
35-39 45,093 2,406,613 1.9 19,718 2,534,580 0.8 27,956 2,423,637 1.2 0.4 - 0.7
40-44 14,086 2,059,961 0.7 11,645 2,207,701 0.5 34,224 2,131,875 1.6 1.1 0.9
45-49 12,333 1,696,494 0.7 22,172 1,745,338 1.3 16,798 1,719,163 1.0 - 0.3 0.3
50-54 0 1,249,659 - 843 1,297,443 0.1 10,249 1,295,015 0.8 0.7 0.8
55-59 1,431 1,014,043 0.1 14,951 1,088,300 1.4 4,947 1,071,583 0.5 - 0.9 0.4
60-64 0 743,736 - 7,988 798,949 1.0 3,992 774,040 0.5 - 0.5 0.5
To tal 6 4 0 ,9 2 5 1 8 ,7 1 6 ,4 3 3 3 .4 4 2 3 ,3 9 7 1 9 ,1 1 3 ,0 5 1 2 .2 6 2 6 ,2 7 9 1 9 ,3 9 8 ,1 6 5 3 .2 1 .0 - 0 .2

7
6. Youth not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET)
This section presents results of the youth aged 15 – 34 who were not in the education system
and were not working or being trained for work during the reference period. The results for
those in NEET at the time of the survey are presented in Table 8. The percentage of youth in
NEET was recorded at 19.0 per cent in quarter 4 of 2022, a 1.3 percentage decrease from the
level recorded in the previous quarter. Youth aged 20 – 24 years continued to record the
highest percentage of persons in NEET at 27.5 per cent.

7. Persons not in the Labour Force

Tables 9a and 9b present persons outside the labour force by age cohorts. In Table 9a, the
potential labour force is included while it is excluded in Table 9b. As shown in Table 9a, there
was a 0.7 percentage point decrease of the proportion of persons outside the labour force
compared to the previous quarter. Similarly, compared to quarter 4 of 2021, the proportion of
persons outside the labour force decreased by 0.6 per cent.

8
Table 8: Youth Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET)

Quarter 4, 2021 Quarter 3, 2022 Quarter 4, 2022 Change

N o t in N o t in N o t in
E ducatio n, E ducatio n, E ducatio n,
E mplo yment To tal E mplo yment To tal E mplo yment To tal Qrt4 , 2 0 2 2 / Qrt4 , 2 0 2 2 /
Age o r Training* Po pulatio n % o r Training* Po pulatio n % o r Training* Po pulatio n % Qrt3 , 2 0 2 2 Qrt4 , 2 0 2 1
15-19 538,809 5,534,297 9.7 723,690 5,656,741 12.8 445,621 5,681,787 7.8 -5.0 -1.9
20-24 1,458,799 4,635,315 31.5 1,345,962 4,737,443 28.4 1,310,816 4,758,427 27.5 -0.9 -4.0
25-29 1,099,857 4,009,805 27.4 943,907 4,098,163 23.0 991,162 4,116,315 24.1 1.1 -3.3
30-34 749,061 3,716,301 20.2 704,719 3,798,173 18.6 751,514 3,814,997 19.7 1.1 -0.5
To tal 3 ,8 4 6 ,5 2 6 1 7 ,8 9 5 ,7 1 8 2 1 .5 3 ,7 1 8 ,2 7 7 1 8 ,2 9 0 ,5 1 9 2 0 .3 3 ,4 9 9 ,1 1 4 1 8 ,3 7 1 ,5 2 6 1 9 .0 -1.3 -2.5
* Vocational training was not captured so, some of the youth might still be in training.

Table 9a: Persons Outside the Labour force by Age Cohorts

Quarter 4, 2021 Quarter 3, 2022 Quarter 4, 2022 Change

N o t in N o t in
Labo ur To tal Labo ur To tal N o t in To tal Qrt4 , 2 0 2 2 / Qrt4 , 2 0 2 2 /
Age Fo rce Po pulatio n Pro p. Fo rce Po pulatio n Pro p. Labo ur Fo rce Po pulatio n Pro p. Qrt3 , 2 0 2 2 Qrt4 , 2 0 2 1
15-19 4,639,363 5,534,297 83.8 5,013,791 5,656,741 88.6 4,743,874 5,681,787 83.5 -5.1 -0.3
20-24 2,151,585 4,635,315 46.4 2,357,513 4,737,443 49.8 2,037,983 4,758,427 42.8 -7.0 -3.6
25-29 876,440 4,009,805 21.9 891,459 4,098,163 21.8 932,700 4,116,315 22.7 0.9 0.8
30-34 682,405 3,716,301 18.4 587,016 3,798,173 15.5 674,115 3,814,997 17.7 2.2 -0.7
35-39 350,575 2,757,188 12.7 283,595 2,818,175 10.1 407,017 2,830,654 14.4 4.3 1.7
40-44 293,925 2,353,886 12.5 198,274 2,405,975 8.2 284,753 2,416,628 11.8 3.6 -0.7
45-49 166,271 1,862,766 8.9 158,654 1,903,993 8.3 193,260 1,912,423 10.1 1.8 1.2
50-54 114,913 1,364,572 8.4 97,308 1,394,751 7.0 105,911 1,400,927 7.6 0.6 -0.8
55-59 154,511 1,168,554 13.2 106,044 1,194,345 8.9 128,051 1,199,634 10.7 1.8 -2.5
60-64 166,516 910,252 18.3 131,377 930,326 14.1 160,406 934,446 17.2 3.1 -1.1
To tal 9 ,5 9 6 ,5 0 3 2 8 ,3 1 2 ,9 3 6 3 3 .9 9 ,8 2 5 ,0 3 2 2 8 ,9 3 8 ,0 8 3 3 4 .0 9 ,6 6 8 ,0 7 1 2 9 ,0 6 6 ,2 3 7 3 3 .3 -0 .7 -0 .6

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Table 9b: Persons Outside the Labour force1 by Age Cohorts

Quarter 4, 2021 Quarter 3, 2022 Quarter 4, 2022 Change

N o t in N o t in N o t in
Labo ur To tal Labo ur To tal Labo ur To tal Qrt4 , 2 0 2 2 / Qrt4 , 2 0 2 2 /
Age Fo rce P o pulatio n P ro p. Fo rce P o pulatio n P ro p. Fo rce P o pulatio n P ro p. Qrt3 , 2 0 2 2 Qrt4 , 2 0 2 1
15-19 4,474,189 5,534,297 80.8 4,734,243 5,656,741 83.7 4,497,196 5,681,787 79.2 -4.5 -1.6
20-24 1,680,284 4,635,315 36.2 1,810,181 4,737,443 38.2 1,457,702 4,758,427 30.6 -7.6 -5.6
25-29 468,723 4,009,805 11.7 533,137 4,098,163 13.0 581,575 4,116,315 14.1 1.1 2.4
30-34 435,968 3,716,301 11.7 316,534 3,798,173 8.3 350,468 3,814,997 9.2 0.9 -2.5
35-39 238,228 2,757,188 8.6 153,420 2,818,175 5.4 226,894 2,830,654 8.0 2.6 -0.6
40-44 175,400 2,353,886 7.5 110,192 2,405,975 4.6 155,690 2,416,628 6.4 1.8 -1.1
45-49 118,696 1,862,766 6.4 92,955 1,903,993 4.9 112,059 1,912,423 5.9 1.0 -0.5
50-54 98,768 1,364,572 7.2 39,023 1,394,751 2.8 62,065 1,400,927 4.4 1.6 -2.8
55-59 121,359 1,168,554 10.4 58,110 1,194,345 4.9 73,379 1,199,634 6.1 1.2 -4.3
60-64 137,511 910,252 15.1 97,617 930,326 10.5 138,182 934,446 14.8 4.3 -0.3
To tal 7 ,9 4 9 ,1 2 6 2 8 ,3 1 2 ,9 3 6 2 8 .1 7 ,9 4 5 ,4 1 2 2 8 ,9 3 8 ,0 8 3 2 7 .5 7 ,6 5 5 ,2 1 0 2 9 ,0 6 6 ,2 3 7 2 6 .3 -1 .2 -1 .8
1
Excludes Potential Labour force

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Appendices

Appendix 1: Survey Design and Methodology

Sample Design
KCHS focuses on data collection for monitoring key labour and welfare indicators among
others. The data is collected on a quarterly basis and analysis undertaken to provide
quarterly national estimates of labour indicators. County level estimates of both labour and
poverty indicators are produced at the end of each year (12 months). The monitoring of
labour indicators on a quarterly basis allows for analysis of changes over specific time
periods to check on quarterly seasonality on labour indicators.

Sample Size and Allocation

The 2022 KCHS is the fourth series of the program and has a total of 50 study domains,
namely; national, urban, rural and 47 counties. In designing the sample, the minimum
sample size for anticipated integrated surveys and relative sizes of the counties were
considered. The sample size for the annual survey consisted of 1,500 clusters and 24,000
households. The clusters were randomized into 4 quarters each comprising of 375 clusters
and 6,000 households. The quarterly sample was distributed to all the 47 counties using
power allocation method. Similar to the 2021 KCHS, the 2022 KCHS is purely cross-
sectional. The sample allocation for the 4th quarter of 2022 is presented in Table 10.

Sampling Frame
The sample for the survey was drawn from the Kenya Household Master Sample Frame (K-
HMSF) developed from the 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census. The K-HMSF is
composed of 10,000 clusters selected with Probability Proportional to Size (PPS) from
approximately 128,000 Enumeration Areas (EAs) created during the 2019 Population and
Housing Census cartographic mapping. In the development of the frame, it was stratified
into 92 sampling strata, that is, urban and rural strata in 45 counties plus Nairobi and
Mombasa counties that are purely urban. The counties formed the 1st level of stratification.

The frame is further divided into four sub-samples (C1, C2, C3 and C4) each composed of
2,500 clusters that can each serve as independent sample frames. Any two or more sub-
samples can be combined whenever a bigger sample size is required. The clusters for the
2022 KCHSP were drawn from component 2 (C2) of the frame.

Sampling
The sampling process entailed the random selection of two sets of units; clusters and
households.

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Sampling of clusters
The clusters were the primary sampling units for the survey and were selected
independently from each of the 92 strata in K-HMSF frame. All the required clusters for
the entire year were selected systematically with equal probability. The selected clusters
from each stratum were further randomized systematically into the four quarters.

Sampling of Households

A total of 16 households per cluster were sampled systematically (with a random start) from
the list of households listed during the K-HMSF cluster development exercise. Sampling of
the households was done centrally at the head-office and interviews were only undertaken
in the preselected households. At the time of interviews in the households, it was expected
that individuals would be eligible for various modules of the survey, with individuals aged
5 years and above being eligible for the labour module.

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Table 10: Sample Allocation for the 4th Quarter of 2022 KCHS

C ounty C luste r s House holds

C ode C ounty R ur al Ur ban Total R ur al Ur ban Total
1 MOMBASA - 8 8 - 128 128
2 KWALE 5 3 8 80 48 128
3 KILIFI 4 4 8 64 64 128
4 TANA RIVER 4 3 7 64 48 112
5 LAMU 4 3 7 64 48 112
6 TAITA-TAVETA 4 3 7 64 48 112
7 GARISSA 5 3 8 80 48 128
8 WAJIR 5 3 8 80 48 128
9 MANDERA 4 4 8 64 64 128
10 MARSABIT 4 3 7 64 48 112
11 ISIOLO 3 4 7 48 64 112
12 MERU 5 3 8 80 48 128
13 THARAKA-NITHI 6 2 8 96 32 128
14 EMBU 5 3 8 80 48 128
15 KITUI 6 2 8 96 32 128
16 MACHAKOS 4 4 8 64 64 128
17 MAKUENI 6 2 8 96 32 128
18 NYANDARUA 5 3 8 80 48 128
19 NYERI 5 3 8 80 48 128
20 KIRINYAGA 5 3 8 80 48 128
21 MURANG'A 5 3 8 80 48 128
22 KIAMBU 3 7 10 48 112 160
23 TURKANA 5 3 8 80 48 128
24 WEST POKOT 6 2 8 96 32 128
25 SAMBURU 4 3 7 64 48 112
26 TRANS NZOIA 5 3 8 80 48 128
27 UASIN GISHU 3 5 8 48 80 128
28 ELGEYO-MARAKWET 5 2 7 80 32 112
29 NANDI 6 2 8 96 32 128
30 BARINGO 5 3 8 80 48 128
31 LAIKIPIA 4 4 8 64 64 128
32 NAKURU 4 5 9 64 80 144
33 NAROK 5 3 8 80 48 128
34 KAJIADO 3 5 8 48 80 128
35 KERICHO 5 3 8 80 48 128
36 BOMET 6 2 8 96 32 128
37 KAKAMEGA 5 3 8 80 48 128
38 VIHIGA 6 2 8 96 32 128
39 BUNGOMA 5 3 8 80 48 128
40 BUSIA 5 3 8 80 48 128
41 SIAYA 6 2 8 96 32 128
42 KISUMU 4 4 8 64 64 128
43 HOMA BAY 5 3 8 80 48 128
44 MIGORI 5 3 8 80 48 128
45 KISII 5 3 8 80 48 128
46 NYAMIRA 6 2 8 96 32 128
47 NAIROBI CITY - 11 11 - 176 176
Total 215 160 375 3,440 2,560 6,000

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Appendix 2: Concepts and Definitions
Economically Active: The activity principle of the labour force framework is based on the
concept of production of goods and services falling under the production frontiers of the
United Nations System of National Accounts (SNA 2008). The economically active
population analysed here consist of the employed and the unemployed persons. The
employed includes those persons who reported that they did some work during the
reference period or they held a job even if they were not actually doing any work at the
time. This covers persons who were on leave or had a business to return to. The
unemployed were persons who reported to be without work, available for work and
actively seeking work. Also included here were persons who though they may not satisfy
the criteria for unemployment, reported that they were out of season or on temporary
layoff.
Inactive Population: The economically inactive population also known as persons not in
the labour force, covers persons who did not work or hold a job during the reference period
and did not seek work because they were either full time students, infirm/incapacitated,
retired or did not need work due to unspecified reasons. Persons who reported that they
were retrenched or declared redundant and persons whose businesses closed and had not
taken steps towards looking for alternative jobs or starting other businesses were included
in the inactive population.
Labour force: consists of all persons in the working age population who are either employed
or unemployed. It was previously also referred to as the ‘currently active population’
Extended Labour force: consists of all persons in the working age population who are either
employed or unemployed and the potential labour force.
Potential labour Force: is defined as all persons of working age who, during the short
reference period, were neither in employment nor in unemployment and: (a) carried out
activities to “seek employment”, were not “currently available” but would become available
within a short subsequent period established in the light of national circumstances (i.e.
unavailable jobseekers); or (b) did not carry out activities to “seek employment”, but
wanted employment and were “currently available” (i.e. available potential jobseekers).
Employment: Refers to performance of work as defined above. This term is used to measure
the number of persons employed, including persons at work during a short reference
period, and persons temporarily absent from work but holding a job.
Unemployment – Strict definition: Under the strict terms is defined as people who do not
have a job, have actively looked for work in the past four weeks, and are currently available
for work.
Combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force (LU3): In addition to the
unemployed under the strict definition, individuals who carried out activities to ‘seek
employment in the short reference period but were not “currently available” and those
who were available but did not actively seek employment are also included.

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Long-term unemployment: This refers to all unemployed persons with continuous periods
of unemployment extending for one year or longer (52 weeks and over).
Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR): The LFPR is a measure of the proportion of a
country’s working-age population that engages actively in the labour market, either by
working or looking for work; it provides an indication of the size of the supply of labour
available to engage in the production of goods and services, relative to the population at
working age.
The Working Age Population (WAP): includes all persons in the population above a
specified age (15-64) threshold used for statistical purposes to define the economically
active population
Employment to Population Ratio: This is the proportion of a country’s working age
population that is employed. It gives an indication of the job opportunities that are available
for persons in the economically active age groups in an economy. A high employment to
population ratio indicates that a large proportion of the population is employed, while a
low ratio means that large share of the population is not directly involved in market related
economic activities because they are either unemployed or out of the labour force.
Time Related Underemployment Rate: This is a measure of labour underutilization that
provides information regarding the share of employed persons who are willing and
available to increase their working time (for production of goods and services within the
SNA production boundary) and worked fewer hours than a specified time threshold during
the reference period.
Labour Underutilization [LU2]: Refers to mismatches between labour supply and demand,
which translate into an unmet need for employment among the population. Labour
underutilization [LU2] is computed as the combined rate of time-related
Underemployment and Unemployment.

Macdonald G. Obudho, MBS

Director General, KNBS

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