The ranks of the informally employed are swelling, says Statistics SA. File photo. Image: Thapelo Morebudi/The Sunday Times. SA, like many other African economies, has shown an increasing trend of informal employment, a report by Stats SA showed on Tuesday. The report showed that informal employment grew by 754,000 jobs — from 4.2 million jobs in 2013 to five million in 2019. This accounted for almost a third of total employment. During 2013 and 2019, the formal sector accounted for 71.2% and 68.5% respectively, of a percentage of total employment, while the informal sector increased by 2.8 percentage points from 15.3% to 18.3%. Participation of males in the informal employment sector was more dominant than that of females. Males recorded an increase from 52.3% in 2013 to 56.2% in 2019. Female representation in informal employment was 47.7% in 2013 and 43.8% in 2019.