Data: Chinese Workers in Africa
Chinese Labor data overview
In 2022, the number of Chinese workers in Africa hit a new low of 88,371, following a 49% decrease in 2020 due to challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This continues the trend of declining numbers of Chinese workers in Africa, down from a peak of 263,696 in 2015.
In 2022, the top five countries with Chinese workers were the Democratic Republic of Congo, Algeria, Egypt, Nigeria, and Angola. These five countries accounted for 42% of all Chinese workers in Africa.
These figures include Chinese workers sent to work on Chinese companies’ construction contracts in Africa ("workers on contracted projects") and Chinese workers hired for other labor services, such as working in factories ("workers doing labor services"); they are reported by Chinese contractors and do not include informal migrants such as traders and shopkeepers.