Afghanistan vs Africa Eastern and Southern: Armed forces personnel, total

Afghanistan
165,000
in 2020
Africa Eastern and Southern
1.20 million
in 2020
Afghanistan rank
37th
Africa Eastern and Southern rank
39th

Armed forces personnel, total over time

  • Afghanistan
  • Africa Eastern and Southern
0500.0k1.0M1.5M198520022020

How they compare

Africa Eastern and Southern currently reports 1.20 million against 165,000 in Afghanistan, a difference of 1.03 million.

That makes Africa Eastern and Southern's figure about 7.3 times Afghanistan's.

Across all 31 years both countries report, Africa Eastern and Southern has been ahead every year.

Afghanistan ranks 37th and Africa Eastern and Southern ranks 39th of 173 countries.

Africa Eastern and Southern has averaged higher in every one of the 5 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade Afghanistan Africa Eastern and Southern Difference Ahead
1980s 51,000 822,150 771,150 Africa Eastern and Southern
1990s 227,900 1.07 million 841,319 Africa Eastern and Southern
2000s 138,093 1.17 million 1.03 million Africa Eastern and Southern
2010s 314,105 1.40 million 1.08 million Africa Eastern and Southern
2020s 165,000 1.20 million 1.03 million Africa Eastern and Southern

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher armed forces personnel, total, Afghanistan or Africa Eastern and Southern?
Africa Eastern and Southern, at 1.20 million against 165,000 in Afghanistan as of 2020.
What is the difference in armed forces personnel, total between Afghanistan and Africa Eastern and Southern?
1.03 million, with Africa Eastern and Southern ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Afghanistan and Africa Eastern and Southern?
31 years are reported by both, from 1985 to 2020.
How do Afghanistan and Africa Eastern and Southern rank globally for armed forces personnel, total?
Afghanistan ranks 37th and Africa Eastern and Southern ranks 39th of 173 countries.
Where does this data come from?
The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies, published as Armed forces personnel, total. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Individual pages

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Afghanistan vs Africa Eastern and Southern: Armed forces personnel, total. Statizoid, drawing on The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies. Retrieved 01 September 2026, from https://public-sector.statizoid.com/compare/armed-forces-personnel-total/afghanistan/africa-eastern-and-southern/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://public-sector.statizoid.com/compare/armed-forces-personnel-total/afghanistan/africa-eastern-and-southern/">Afghanistan vs Africa Eastern and Southern: Armed forces personnel, total</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Armed forces personnel, total
Source
The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
219 places, 6,823 data points, 1985–2020
Last refreshed

Armed forces personnel are active duty military personnel, including paramilitary forces if the training, organization, equipment, and control suggest they may be used to support or replace regular military forces.