Armed forces personnel in Kuwait
Kuwait: Armed forces personnel was 1.0% in 2020. ▼ Falling
Armed forces personnel in Kuwait, 1990–2020
Source: The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies. Measured in % of total labor force.
Analysis
In 2020, armed forces personnel in Kuwait stood at 1.0%.
That represents a change of up 6.8% on the previous year and down 28.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel in Kuwait peaked at 2.9% in 1995 and was at its lowest, 1.0%, in 2019.
Kuwait ranks 66th of 171 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 31 years of available data.
Armed forces personnel in Kuwait, year by year
| Year | % of total labor force | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 1.0% | — |
| 1991 | 1.8% | +77.9% |
| 1992 | 1.8% | -0.5% |
| 1993 | 1.7% | -4.1% |
| 1994 | 2.1% | +20.9% |
| 1995 | 2.9% | +39.6% |
| 1996 | 2.7% | -7.0% |
| 1997 | 2.5% | -5.8% |
| 1998 | 2.4% | -3.7% |
| 1999 | 2.3% | -3.9% |
| 2000 | 2.2% | -4.1% |
| 2001 | 2.2% | -3.4% |
| 2002 | 2.2% | +3.0% |
| 2003 | 2.1% | -4.5% |
| 2004 | 1.9% | -9.2% |
| 2005 | 2.0% | +4.1% |
| 2006 | 1.9% | -5.7% |
| 2007 | 1.8% | -5.9% |
| 2008 | 1.7% | -5.9% |
| 2009 | 1.5% | -7.7% |
| 2010 | 1.5% | -6.1% |
| 2011 | 1.3% | -8.0% |
| 2012 | 1.2% | -8.0% |
| 2013 | 1.2% | -5.8% |
| 2014 | 1.1% | -5.1% |
| 2015 | 1.0% | -5.2% |
| 2016 | 1.0% | -5.0% |
| 2017 | 1.0% | +5.3% |
| 2018 | 1.0% | -6.4% |
| 2019 | 1.0% | -0.7% |
| 2020 | 1.0% | +6.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 2.1% | 1.0% | 2.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.0% | 1.5% | 2.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Kuwait
More public sector data for Kuwait
- Arms imports 503.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 102.71 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0.0031 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate 1.21 % change on previous year (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), gaps filled 503.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per capita 1,591 current USD per person (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per unit of GDP 0.0484 current USD per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), annual growth rate 0.4887 % change on previous year (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), gaps filled 7.79 billion current USD (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per square kilometre 27,890 SIPRI trend indicator values per square kilometre (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel in Kuwait?
- Armed forces personnel in Kuwait was 1.0% in 2020, according to The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.
- What is the highest armed forces personnel recorded in Kuwait?
- The highest recorded value was 2.9% in 1995.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel recorded in Kuwait?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.0% in 2019.
- How does Kuwait rank for armed forces personnel?
- Kuwait ranks 66th out of 171 countries with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel rising or falling in Kuwait?
- Over the last ten years it is down 28.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Kuwait data come from?
- The figures come from The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies, published as part of Armed forces personnel (% of total labor force). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 31 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
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. Labor force comprises all people who meet the International Labour Organization's definition of the economically active population.