Armed forces personnel in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)
Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries): Armed forces personnel was 0.4% in 2020. ▼ Falling
Armed forces personnel in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries), 1990–2020
Source: The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies. Measured in % of total labor force.
Analysis
The most recent figure for armed forces personnel in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) is 0.4%, measured in 2020. That is the lowest value across all 30 years on record.
That represents a change of down 12.4% on the previous year and down 21.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) peaked at 0.7% in 1995 and was at its lowest, 0.4%, in 2020.
That places Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) 43rd out of 46 groups with data for 2020, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 30 years of available data.
Armed forces personnel in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries), year by year
| Year | % of total labor force | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 0.6% | — |
| 1991 | 0.5% | -11.0% |
| 1992 | 0.5% | -8.6% |
| 1993 | 0.5% | +0.5% |
| 1994 | 0.5% | -8.1% |
| 1995 | 0.7% | +53.7% |
| 1996 | 0.7% | -4.8% |
| 1997 | 0.6% | -4.6% |
| 1998 | 0.6% | -1.7% |
| 1999 | 0.6% | +1.0% |
| 2000 | 0.6% | +0.9% |
| 2001 | 0.6% | -6.8% |
| 2002 | 0.6% | -4.7% |
| 2003 | 0.5% | -6.7% |
| 2004 | 0.5% | -7.0% |
| 2005 | 0.5% | -1.1% |
| 2007 | 0.5% | -5.5% |
| 2008 | 0.5% | -2.2% |
| 2009 | 0.4% | -1.4% |
| 2010 | 0.5% | +6.6% |
| 2011 | 0.5% | +7.6% |
| 2012 | 0.5% | -2.0% |
| 2013 | 0.5% | -4.1% |
| 2014 | 0.5% | -2.2% |
| 2015 | 0.5% | -1.0% |
| 2016 | 0.4% | -8.6% |
| 2017 | 0.4% | -2.5% |
| 2018 | 0.4% | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 0.4% | +3.1% |
| 2020 | 0.4% | -12.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.5% | 0.4% | 0.6% | 9 |
| 2010s | 0.5% | 0.4% | 0.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)
More public sector data for Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)
- Arms imports 731.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2023)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 0.5807 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2023)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0.0003 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate 25.82 % change on previous year (2023)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), gaps filled 731.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2023)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per capita 16.8 current USD per person (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per unit of GDP 0.0109 current USD per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), annual growth rate -6.41 % change on previous year (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), gaps filled 21.67 billion current USD (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per square kilometre 30.58 SIPRI trend indicator values per square kilometre (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- Armed forces personnel in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) was 0.4% in 2020, according to The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.
- What is the highest armed forces personnel recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- The highest recorded value was 0.7% in 1995.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.4% in 2020.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) rank for armed forces personnel?
- Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) ranks 43rd out of 46 groups with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- Over the last ten years it is down 21.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) 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.
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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.