Military expenditure in South Africa
South Africa: Military expenditure was 2.1% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Military expenditure in South Africa, 2000–2024
Source: SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Measured in % of general government expenditure.
Analysis
In 2024, military expenditure in South Africa stood at 2.1%. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
That represents a change of down 8.8% on the previous year and down 39.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military expenditure in South Africa peaked at 6.2% in 2002 and was at its lowest, 2.1%, in 2024.
South Africa ranks 142nd of 161 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Military expenditure in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % of general government expenditure | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 5.5% | — |
| 2001 | 5.9% | +6.9% |
| 2002 | 6.2% | +4.7% |
| 2003 | 5.8% | -6.2% |
| 2004 | 5.3% | -7.6% |
| 2005 | 4.9% | -7.9% |
| 2006 | 4.7% | -4.8% |
| 2007 | 4.3% | -7.4% |
| 2008 | 4.0% | -7.8% |
| 2009 | 3.8% | -4.2% |
| 2010 | 3.5% | -7.5% |
| 2011 | 3.6% | +0.8% |
| 2012 | 3.6% | +1.1% |
| 2013 | 3.6% | -1.6% |
| 2014 | 3.5% | -2.0% |
| 2015 | 3.3% | -4.2% |
| 2016 | 3.2% | -2.7% |
| 2017 | 3.2% | -2.7% |
| 2018 | 3.0% | -6.1% |
| 2019 | 2.8% | -5.3% |
| 2020 | 2.8% | -1.7% |
| 2021 | 2.5% | -10.4% |
| 2022 | 2.5% | +1.1% |
| 2023 | 2.3% | -7.6% |
| 2024 | 2.1% | -8.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 5.0% | 3.8% | 6.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.3% | 2.8% | 3.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.4% | 2.1% | 2.8% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More public sector data for South Africa
- Arms imports 30.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2023)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 0.4746 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2023)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0.0001 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2023)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), gaps filled 30.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2023)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per capita 44.31 current USD per person (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per unit of GDP 0.0071 current USD per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), annual growth rate -1.41 % change on previous year (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), gaps filled 2.84 billion current USD (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per square kilometre 24.73 SIPRI trend indicator values per square kilometre (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military expenditure in South Africa?
- Military expenditure in South Africa was 2.1% in 2024, according to SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
- What is the highest military expenditure recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 6.2% in 2002.
- What is the lowest military expenditure recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.1% in 2024.
- How does South Africa rank for military expenditure?
- South Africa ranks 142nd out of 161 countries with data for 2024.
- Is military expenditure rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 39.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), published as part of Military expenditure (% of general government expenditure). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Military expenditure expressed as a percentage of general government expenditure