Share of Industry Jobs

The industry sector includes mining and quarrying, manufacturing, electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply, water supply, and construction activities, as defined by the International Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic Activities (ISIC) (categories B to F in ISIC revision 4).

Scale: Share of total employment working in the industry sector.   

Direction of Change

INDUSTRIAL EMPLOYMENT HAS DECLINED SHARPLY OVER TIME

Industrial employment in Bosnia and Herzegovina has shown a clear long-term decline since the mid-1990s. After starting at a relatively high level in 1995, the share of total employment in industry gradually increased into the early 2000s, reaching its highest point. From the late 2000s onward, however, the trend reverses: the share begins a steady decline, briefly stabilising in the mid-2010s before entering two decades of fluctuating results. This downward trend persists through the most recent year, reflecting the gradual weakening of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s industrial base. Overall, the long-term direction points to a structural move away from industrial employment.

Global Rank

Compared with all geographic entities listed in the Index

Note: Population-weighted averages for Europe and the world.

Regional Rank

Compared with six former Yugoslav countries and Albania

Note: In 1995, Montenegro, Serbia, and Kosovo were part of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

1995 (highest → lowest): Slovenia, North Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, Albania.

2023 (highest → lowest): >Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Serbia, Croatia, Albania, Montenegro.

Conclusion

Bosnia and Herzegovina’s labour market has steadily de-industrialised since 1995, with industry now employing a far smaller share of workers than at the start of the century.

Source: ILO Modelled Estimates Database (ILOEST), ILOSTAT, via World Bank (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.