Military expenditure (% of GDP) in Burundi
Burundi: Military expenditure (% of GDP) was 3.2% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Military expenditure in Burundi, 1961–2025
Source: SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2025, military expenditure in Burundi stood at 3.2%.
That represents a change of down 9.0% on the previous year and up 52.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military expenditure in Burundi peaked at 6.6% in 1998 and was at its lowest, 0.4%, in 1963.
Burundi ranks 28th of 167 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 61 years of available data.
Military expenditure (% of GDP) in Burundi, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 0.2% | — |
| 1962 | 3.9% | +2006.8% |
| 1963 | 0.4% | -89.0% |
| 1964 | 0.4% | +2.5% |
| 1965 | 1.4% | +203.5% |
| 1966 | 1.4% | +2.2% |
| 1967 | 1.3% | -3.6% |
| 1968 | 1.4% | +6.1% |
| 1969 | 1.8% | +24.1% |
| 1971 | 1.0% | -41.2% |
| 1972 | 1.5% | +41.3% |
| 1973 | 1.9% | +33.4% |
| 1974 | 2.2% | +14.3% |
| 1975 | 2.1% | -7.6% |
| 1976 | 2.2% | +8.1% |
| 1977 | 2.5% | +13.9% |
| 1978 | 2.8% | +10.4% |
| 1979 | 2.6% | -5.5% |
| 1980 | 2.9% | +10.4% |
| 1981 | 3.0% | +3.8% |
| 1982 | 3.5% | +15.7% |
| 1983 | 3.1% | -11.5% |
| 1984 | 3.0% | -4.2% |
| 1985 | 2.8% | -7.5% |
| 1986 | 2.8% | +2.0% |
| 1987 | 2.6% | -5.6% |
| 1988 | 3.1% | +18.7% |
| 1989 | 3.3% | +6.5% |
| 1990 | 3.4% | +3.0% |
| 1991 | 3.8% | +9.8% |
| 1992 | 3.6% | -5.0% |
| 1993 | 3.7% | +3.5% |
| 1994 | 3.9% | +5.4% |
| 1995 | 4.2% | +7.3% |
| 1996 | 5.9% | +39.1% |
| 1997 | 6.4% | +8.6% |
| 1998 | 6.6% | +3.3% |
| 1999 | 6.3% | -4.8% |
| 2000 | 4.9% | -22.3% |
| 2001 | 6.1% | +24.9% |
| 2002 | 5.4% | -10.4% |
| 2003 | 5.5% | +1.7% |
| 2004 | 4.9% | -11.4% |
| 2005 | 4.4% | -9.5% |
| 2006 | 3.5% | -20.8% |
| 2007 | 3.4% | -2.8% |
| 2008 | 2.7% | -20.3% |
| 2012 | 2.5% | -7.1% |
| 2013 | 2.5% | -1.8% |
| 2014 | 2.3% | -7.4% |
| 2015 | 2.1% | -7.3% |
| 2016 | 2.2% | +5.2% |
| 2017 | 2.0% | -10.7% |
| 2018 | 2.1% | +7.3% |
| 2019 | 2.8% | +30.8% |
| 2020 | 2.2% | -22.3% |
| 2021 | 2.0% | -6.6% |
| 2022 | 2.6% | +27.2% |
| 2023 | 3.4% | +32.0% |
| 2024 | 3.6% | +3.9% |
| 2025 | 3.2% | -9.0% |
Burundi compared with similar countries
- Burundi's 3.2% is above the median for low income countries, which is 1.8%, 1.8× the median. (24 countries reporting)
- Burundi's 3.2% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 1.3%, 2.5× the median. (46 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Military expenditure (% of GDP) in Burundi changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | +2006.8% | 0.2% | 3.9% |
| 1965 | +203.5% | 0.4% | 1.4% |
| 1963 | -89.0% | 3.9% | 0.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.4% | 0.2% | 3.9% | 9 |
| 1970s | 2.1% | 1.0% | 2.8% | 9 |
| 1980s | 3.0% | 2.6% | 3.5% | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.8% | 3.4% | 6.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.5% | 2.7% | 6.1% | 9 |
| 2010s | 2.3% | 2.0% | 2.8% | 8 |
| 2020s | 2.8% | 2.0% | 3.6% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Burundi
More public sector data for Burundi
- Democracy, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Chief executive of the government is elected, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Elected parliament, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Universal right to vote, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Universal right to vote in practice, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Arms imports 2.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2019)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 0.1632 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2019)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0.0007 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2019)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate 200 % change on previous year (2016)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military expenditure in Burundi?
- Military expenditure in Burundi was 3.2% in 2025, according to SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
- What is the highest military expenditure recorded in Burundi?
- The highest recorded value was 6.6% in 1998.
- What is the lowest military expenditure recorded in Burundi?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.4% in 1963.
- How does Burundi rank for military expenditure?
- Burundi ranks 28th out of 167 countries with data for 2025.
- Is military expenditure rising or falling in Burundi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 52.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Burundi data come from?
- The figures come from SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), published as part of Military expenditure (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Military expenditure by country as percentage of gross domestic product