Goods and services expense in Sub-Saharan Africa

Sub-Saharan Africa: Goods and services expense was 19.7% in 2021. ▼ Falling

Latest (2021)
19.7%
Change on year
up 13.6%
Rank
9th
of 39 groups
All-time high
24.5%
in 2017
All-time low
17.3%
in 2020
Years of data
13
2009–2021

Goods and services expense in Sub-Saharan Africa, 2009–2021

05101520252009201520212009: 21.3 % of expense2010: 20.7 % of expense2011: 21.8 % of expense2012: 23 % of expense2013: 18.6 % of expense2014: 21.7 % of expense2015: 21.2 % of expense2016: 20.6 % of expense2017: 24.5 % of expense2018: 21.4 % of expense2019: 20.3 % of expense2020: 17.3 % of expense2021: 19.7 % of expense

Source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of expense.

Analysis

The most recent figure for goods and services expense in Sub-Saharan Africa is 19.7%, measured in 2021.

The figure is up 13.6% on the previous year and down 9.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, goods and services expense in Sub-Saharan Africa peaked at 24.5% in 2017 and was at its lowest, 17.3%, in 2020.

Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 9th of 39 groups on this measure, in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 13 years of available data.

Goods and services expense in Sub-Saharan Africa, year by year

Annual values for Goods and services expense (% of expense) in Sub-Saharan Africa, 2009 to 2021.
Year % of expense Change
2009 21.3%
2010 20.7% -2.9%
2011 21.8% +5.7%
2012 23.0% +5.2%
2013 18.6% -19.2%
2014 21.7% +16.8%
2015 21.2% -2.1%
2016 20.6% -2.8%
2017 24.5% +18.9%
2018 21.4% -12.9%
2019 20.3% -4.9%
2020 17.3% -14.7%
2021 19.7% +13.6%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 21.3% 21.3% 21.3% 1
2010s 21.4% 18.6% 24.5% 10
2020s 18.5% 17.3% 19.7% 2

Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa

  1. 6 Solomon Islands 38.5% compare
  2. 7 Ukraine 35.7% compare
  3. 8 Naoero 35.6% compare
  4. 9 Cameroon 33.6% compare
  5. 10 Micronesia, Federated States of 32.9% compare
  6. 11 Guinea-Bissau 32.4% compare
  7. 12 Central African Republic 31.7% compare

See the full ranking of 195 places →

More public sector data for Sub-Saharan Africa

All data for Sub-Saharan Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is goods and services expense in Sub-Saharan Africa?
Goods and services expense in Sub-Saharan Africa was 19.7% in 2021, according to Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
What is the highest goods and services expense recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
The highest recorded value was 24.5% in 2017.
What is the lowest goods and services expense recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 17.3% in 2020.
How does Sub-Saharan Africa rank for goods and services expense?
Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 9th out of 39 groups with data for 2021.
Is goods and services expense rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa?
Over the last ten years it is down 9.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa data come from?
The figures come from Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Goods and services expense (% of expense). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Goods and services expense in Sub-Saharan Africa. Statizoid, drawing on Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Retrieved 03 September 2026, from https://public-sector.statizoid.com/stat/goods-and-services-expense-percent-of-expense/sub-saharan-africa/

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/stat/goods-and-services-expense-percent-of-expense/sub-saharan-africa/">Goods and services expense in Sub-Saharan Africa</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Goods and services expense (% of expense)
Unit
% of expense
Source
Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
195 places, 5,247 data points, 1972–2024
Last refreshed

Goods and services include all government payments in exchange for goods and services used for the production of market and nonmarket goods and services. Use of goods and services for own account capital formation is excluded. This indicator is expressed as percentage of total expenses which is any decrease in net worth resulting from a transaction.