Military expenditure (% of GDP) in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea: Military expenditure (% of GDP) was 0.4% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Military expenditure in Papua New Guinea, 1975–2025
Source: SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Papua New Guinea recorded 0.4% for military expenditure in 2025.
That represents a change of up 12.9% on the previous year and down 23.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military expenditure in Papua New Guinea peaked at 1.6% in 1976 and was at its lowest, 0.3%, in 2024.
That places Papua New Guinea 160th out of 167 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Military expenditure (% of GDP) in Papua New Guinea, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 0.6% | — |
| 1976 | 1.6% | +170.3% |
| 1977 | 1.3% | -23.4% |
| 1978 | 1.3% | +1.3% |
| 1979 | 1.2% | -4.4% |
| 1980 | 1.4% | +15.9% |
| 1981 | 1.4% | +0.5% |
| 1985 | 1.6% | +10.6% |
| 1986 | 1.6% | +0.4% |
| 1987 | 1.6% | +2.9% |
| 1988 | 1.3% | -21.4% |
| 1989 | 1.5% | +18.2% |
| 1990 | 1.4% | -5.2% |
| 1991 | 0.9% | -34.8% |
| 1992 | 0.9% | -3.7% |
| 1993 | 0.9% | +3.0% |
| 1994 | 1.0% | +10.4% |
| 1995 | 0.8% | -23.5% |
| 1996 | 1.0% | +31.2% |
| 1997 | 1.1% | +5.7% |
| 1998 | 0.9% | -18.2% |
| 1999 | 0.7% | -21.4% |
| 2000 | 0.6% | -7.6% |
| 2001 | 0.5% | -14.4% |
| 2002 | 0.4% | -32.1% |
| 2003 | 0.3% | -7.0% |
| 2004 | 0.4% | +12.5% |
| 2005 | 0.4% | +7.1% |
| 2006 | 0.4% | -9.5% |
| 2007 | 0.4% | +9.2% |
| 2008 | 0.3% | -18.1% |
| 2009 | 0.4% | +32.9% |
| 2010 | 0.3% | -27.4% |
| 2011 | 0.4% | +9.8% |
| 2012 | 0.5% | +45.5% |
| 2013 | 0.5% | -4.8% |
| 2014 | 0.5% | -2.0% |
| 2015 | 0.5% | -5.1% |
| 2016 | 0.4% | -17.1% |
| 2017 | 0.4% | -6.8% |
| 2018 | 0.3% | -7.0% |
| 2019 | 0.4% | +9.8% |
| 2020 | 0.4% | +8.4% |
| 2021 | 0.3% | -16.2% |
| 2022 | 0.4% | +27.7% |
| 2023 | 0.4% | -16.7% |
| 2024 | 0.3% | -11.5% |
| 2025 | 0.4% | +12.9% |
Papua New Guinea compared with similar countries
- Papua New Guinea's 0.4% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 1.5%, 24% of the median. (40 countries reporting)
- Papua New Guinea's 0.4% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 1.4%, 25% of the median. (19 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Military expenditure (% of GDP) in Papua New Guinea 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | +170.3% | 0.6% | 1.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 1.2% | 0.6% | 1.6% | 5 |
| 1980s | 1.5% | 1.3% | 1.6% | 7 |
| 1990s | 1.0% | 0.7% | 1.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.4% | 0.3% | 0.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.4% | 0.3% | 0.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.4% | 0.3% | 0.4% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Papua New Guinea
More public sector data for Papua New Guinea
- 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 9.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2023)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 0.8663 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 600 % change on previous year (1997)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military expenditure in Papua New Guinea?
- Military expenditure in Papua New Guinea was 0.4% in 2025, according to SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
- What is the highest military expenditure recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The highest recorded value was 1.6% in 1976.
- What is the lowest military expenditure recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.3% in 2024.
- How does Papua New Guinea rank for military expenditure?
- Papua New Guinea ranks 160th out of 167 countries with data for 2025.
- Is military expenditure rising or falling in Papua New Guinea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 23.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Papua New Guinea 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