General government final consumption expenditure in Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa: General government final consumption expenditure was 17.0% in 2025. ▲ Rising
General government final consumption expenditure in Sub-Saharan Africa, 1965–2025
Source: Country official statistics, National Statistical Offices (NSOs). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Sub-Saharan Africa recorded 17.0% for general government final consumption expenditure in 2025.
The figure is down 1.4% on the previous year and up 11.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, general government final consumption expenditure in Sub-Saharan Africa peaked at 20.8% in 1992 and was at its lowest, 10.5%, in 1965.
Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 14th of 43 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 61 years of available data.
General government final consumption expenditure in Sub-Saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1965 | 10.5% | — |
| 1966 | 10.5% | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 11.2% | +6.6% |
| 1968 | 11.9% | +7.0% |
| 1969 | 11.7% | -2.4% |
| 1970 | 11.5% | -1.6% |
| 1971 | 12.9% | +12.6% |
| 1972 | 12.2% | -5.5% |
| 1973 | 11.8% | -3.3% |
| 1974 | 11.3% | -4.4% |
| 1975 | 12.5% | +11.0% |
| 1976 | 12.1% | -3.1% |
| 1977 | 12.4% | +2.5% |
| 1978 | 13.3% | +7.2% |
| 1979 | 13.8% | +3.6% |
| 1980 | 14.3% | +3.9% |
| 1981 | 10.6% | -25.8% |
| 1982 | 11.1% | +4.0% |
| 1983 | 12.6% | +13.5% |
| 1984 | 13.9% | +10.3% |
| 1985 | 12.8% | -7.5% |
| 1986 | 16.8% | +30.9% |
| 1987 | 18.7% | +11.3% |
| 1988 | 18.2% | -2.3% |
| 1989 | 18.0% | -1.5% |
| 1990 | 18.5% | +2.7% |
| 1991 | 18.6% | +0.5% |
| 1992 | 20.8% | +11.9% |
| 1993 | 20.2% | -2.8% |
| 1994 | 18.9% | -6.6% |
| 1995 | 15.5% | -17.7% |
| 1996 | 14.3% | -7.8% |
| 1997 | 14.1% | -1.6% |
| 1998 | 13.5% | -4.1% |
| 1999 | 18.5% | +37.1% |
| 2000 | 17.4% | -6.2% |
| 2001 | 17.2% | -0.6% |
| 2002 | 16.0% | -7.3% |
| 2003 | 17.4% | +9.2% |
| 2004 | 17.1% | -1.7% |
| 2005 | 16.1% | -5.8% |
| 2006 | 15.1% | -6.6% |
| 2007 | 15.2% | +0.7% |
| 2008 | 14.9% | -1.9% |
| 2009 | 16.2% | +8.7% |
| 2010 | 15.8% | -2.1% |
| 2011 | 16.6% | +4.9% |
| 2012 | 16.3% | -2.1% |
| 2013 | 16.2% | -0.5% |
| 2014 | 15.4% | -5.0% |
| 2015 | 15.2% | -0.8% |
| 2016 | 15.8% | +3.5% |
| 2017 | 16.4% | +3.8% |
| 2018 | 15.7% | -4.5% |
| 2019 | 13.9% | -11.1% |
| 2020 | 14.7% | +5.4% |
| 2021 | 14.8% | +0.8% |
| 2022 | 14.8% | +0.2% |
| 2023 | 15.4% | +4.0% |
| 2024 | 17.2% | +11.7% |
| 2025 | 17.0% | -1.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 11.1% | 10.5% | 11.9% | 5 |
| 1970s | 12.4% | 11.3% | 13.8% | 10 |
| 1980s | 14.7% | 10.6% | 18.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 17.3% | 13.5% | 20.8% | 10 |
| 2000s | 16.3% | 14.9% | 17.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 15.7% | 13.9% | 16.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 15.6% | 14.7% | 17.2% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa
- 11 French Polynesia 32.0% compare
- 12 Botswana 31.5% compare
- 13 Faroe Islands 27.9% compare
- 14 Guyana 26.9% compare
- 15 Eritrea 26.6% compare
- 16 Sweden 26.4% compare
- 17 Solomon Islands 26.2% compare
More economy & growth data for Sub-Saharan Africa
- Gross capital formation (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.2311 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (current US$), annual growth rate 8.19 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross capital formation (constant 2015 US$), per capita 407.9 constant 2015 US$ per person (2025)
- Gross capital formation (constant 2015 US$), per unit of GDP 0.2438 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (constant 2015 US$) 246.12 constant 2015 US$ per person (2025)
- Gross capital formation (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate 5.43 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross capital formation (current US$), per capita 386.71 current US$ per person (2025)
- Gross fixed capital formation (constant 2015 US$), per capita 398.55 constant 2015 US$ per person (2025)
- Households and NPISHs Final consumption expenditure (current US$) 0.8256 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Gross fixed capital formation (constant 2015 US$), per unit of GDP 0.2382 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is general government final consumption expenditure in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- General government final consumption expenditure in Sub-Saharan Africa was 17.0% in 2025, according to Country official statistics, National Statistical Offices (NSOs).
- What is the highest general government final consumption expenditure recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 20.8% in 1992.
- What is the lowest general government final consumption expenditure recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.5% in 1965.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa rank for general government final consumption expenditure?
- Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 14th out of 43 groups with data for 2025.
- Is general government final consumption expenditure rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 11.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Country official statistics, National Statistical Offices (NSOs), published as part of General government final consumption expenditure (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 61 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Final consumption expenditure is expenditure on goods and services by resident institutional units for the direct satisfaction of human needs or wants, whether individual or collective. General government FCE includes all government current expenditures for purchases of goods and services (including compensation of employees), and most expenditures on national defense and security, but excludes government military expenditures that are part of government capital formation. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period.