Colombia's unemployment rate stood at 8% in September, which means a decrease of 1.4 percentage points compared with August and of two-tenths of a point compared with the same month the previous year, so the 2026 lows already seen in May and June are being recorded again.
According to the data released by the National Administrative Department of Statistics (DANE), in the last twelve months the sectors that generated the most employment were commerce and vehicle repair, with 162,000 new positions; industry, with 100,000; and transport and storage, with 84,000 additional jobs.
On the opposite side, the block of agriculture, livestock, hunting, forestry and fishing destroyed 184,000 jobs. Artistic, leisure and other services activities also cut jobs, as did Public Administration, defense, education and health, with 49,000 and 23,000 fewer jobs, respectively.
The employment rate (TO) increased by 1.3 points, from 57.4% in September 2025 to 58.7% in September 2026. For its part, the global participation rate (TGP) advanced by half a percentage point, reaching 63.8%.
In the urban area, the cities with the highest level of unemployment were Quibdó, with 23.4%; Cartagena, with 13.7%; and Tunja, with 13.2%. In contrast, the lowest unemployment rates were recorded in Medellín (7.8%), Villavicencio (7.7%) and Bogotá (7.6%).