Annual growth of GDP per capita in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea: Annual growth of GDP per capita was 3.8% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Annual growth of GDP per capita in Papua New Guinea, 1961–2025
Source: National statistical organizations and central banks, OECD national accounts, and World Bank staff estimates (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in annual %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for annual growth of gdp per capita in Papua New Guinea is 3.8%, measured in 2025.
That represents a change of up 85.6% on the previous year and down 2.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual growth of gdp per capita in Papua New Guinea peaked at 14.0% in 1993 and was at its lowest, -7.3%, in 1997.
Papua New Guinea ranks 56th of 212 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Annual growth of GDP per capita in Papua New Guinea, year by year
| Year | annual % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 3.5% | — |
| 1962 | 3.9% | +11.7% |
| 1963 | 1.8% | -55.2% |
| 1964 | 6.2% | +253.4% |
| 1965 | 7.9% | +27.0% |
| 1966 | 3.5% | -55.8% |
| 1967 | 1.8% | -49.6% |
| 1968 | 2.0% | +15.2% |
| 1969 | 5.8% | +184.6% |
| 1970 | 8.2% | +42.4% |
| 1971 | 3.8% | -54.2% |
| 1972 | 3.2% | -16.6% |
| 1973 | 4.1% | +29.1% |
| 1974 | 0.3% | -92.7% |
| 1975 | -3.1% | -1130.3% |
| 1976 | -5.5% | +78.8% |
| 1977 | -1.3% | -75.8% |
| 1978 | 6.3% | -572.1% |
| 1979 | -0.3% | -104.5% |
| 1980 | -4.3% | +1437.9% |
| 1981 | -2.3% | -46.2% |
| 1982 | -1.7% | -26.0% |
| 1983 | 1.1% | -162.7% |
| 1984 | -2.4% | -327.6% |
| 1985 | 1.8% | -173.3% |
| 1986 | 2.5% | +36.9% |
| 1987 | 0.6% | -76.8% |
| 1988 | 0.7% | +24.3% |
| 1989 | -3.6% | -608.1% |
| 1990 | -5.5% | +52.8% |
| 1991 | 6.1% | -211.3% |
| 1992 | 9.9% | +61.3% |
| 1993 | 14.0% | +41.4% |
| 1994 | 2.2% | -84.5% |
| 1995 | -6.7% | -409.4% |
| 1996 | 3.9% | -158.7% |
| 1997 | -7.3% | -284.0% |
| 1998 | -7.1% | -2.4% |
| 1999 | -1.6% | -77.1% |
| 2000 | -5.8% | +256.3% |
| 2001 | -3.5% | -40.4% |
| 2002 | -3.5% | -0.1% |
| 2003 | -1.2% | -66.1% |
| 2004 | -0.6% | -49.6% |
| 2005 | 3.0% | -601.3% |
| 2006 | 2.1% | -29.1% |
| 2007 | 4.5% | +113.1% |
| 2008 | -3.3% | -174.7% |
| 2009 | 3.6% | -207.0% |
| 2010 | 6.9% | +91.5% |
| 2011 | -1.8% | -126.2% |
| 2012 | 1.8% | -199.1% |
| 2013 | 1.1% | -40.6% |
| 2014 | 10.6% | +902.7% |
| 2015 | 3.9% | -63.2% |
| 2016 | 2.9% | -25.2% |
| 2017 | 1.1% | -62.7% |
| 2018 | -2.6% | -336.4% |
| 2019 | 2.1% | -183.6% |
| 2020 | -5.2% | -342.4% |
| 2021 | -2.5% | -52.6% |
| 2022 | 3.7% | -251.3% |
| 2023 | 1.9% | -47.9% |
| 2024 | 2.1% | +5.4% |
| 2025 | 3.8% | +85.6% |
Papua New Guinea compared with similar countries
- Papua New Guinea's 3.8% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 2.7%, 1.4× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Papua New Guinea's 3.8% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3.4%, 1.1× the median. (36 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Annual growth of GDP per capita 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | -1437.9% | -0.3% | -4.3% |
| 1975 | -1130.3% | 0.3% | -3.1% |
| 2014 | +902.7% | 1.1% | 10.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 4.1% | 1.8% | 7.9% | 9 |
| 1970s | 1.6% | -5.5% | 8.2% | 10 |
| 1980s | -0.8% | -4.3% | 2.5% | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.8% | -7.3% | 14.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | -0.5% | -5.8% | 4.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.6% | -2.6% | 10.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.6% | -5.2% | 3.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Papua New Guinea
More economy & growth data for Papua New Guinea
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 1.47 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 3.11 Percent per annum (2029)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, annual growth rate -52.52 % change on previous year (2024)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0004 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per capita 1.09 units per person (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, annual growth rate -51.15 % change on previous year (2024)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per capita 0.7945 units per person (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, annual growth rate 40.57 % change on previous year (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0269 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual growth of gdp per capita in Papua New Guinea?
- Annual growth of gdp per capita in Papua New Guinea was 3.8% in 2025, according to National statistical organizations and central banks, OECD national accounts, and World Bank staff estimates (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual growth of gdp per capita recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The highest recorded value was 14.0% in 1993.
- What is the lowest annual growth of gdp per capita recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The lowest recorded value was -7.3% in 1997.
- How does Papua New Guinea rank for annual growth of gdp per capita?
- Papua New Guinea ranks 56th out of 212 countries with data for 2025.
- Is annual growth of gdp per capita rising or falling in Papua New Guinea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Papua New Guinea data come from?
- The figures come from National statistical organizations and central banks, OECD national accounts, and World Bank staff estimates (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual growth of GDP per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
This data is adjusted for inflation.