(FILES) Vendors display beans for sale at the market in Goma, capital of North Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, on January 14, 2026. Estimated at more than 60% in the early 1970s, the number of Africans working in the informal sector has continued to grow in recent years and now stands at nearly 83%, according to the International Labour Organization (ILO). More than 90% of the working population is concerned in Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal, Mali or Nigeria, while the figure reaches 80% in the Democratic Republic of Congo or Ghana. (Photo by Glody MURHABAZI / AFP via Getty Images)