Insurance and financial services in Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa: Insurance and financial services was 8.7% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Insurance and financial services in Sub-Saharan Africa, 1978–2024
Source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of service exports, BoP.
Analysis
Sub-Saharan Africa recorded 8.7% for insurance and financial services in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 4.6% on the previous year and up 96.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, insurance and financial services in Sub-Saharan Africa peaked at 9.7% in 2021 and was at its lowest, 2.8%, in 2002.
That places Sub-Saharan Africa 13th out of 45 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 47 years of available data.
Insurance and financial services in Sub-Saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | % of service exports, BoP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1978 | 6.6% | — |
| 1979 | 6.2% | -6.0% |
| 1980 | 5.7% | -8.9% |
| 1981 | 6.0% | +5.1% |
| 1982 | 5.9% | -1.5% |
| 1983 | 3.7% | -36.5% |
| 1984 | 4.2% | +13.0% |
| 1985 | 4.9% | +15.8% |
| 1986 | 5.2% | +5.7% |
| 1987 | 4.6% | -11.4% |
| 1988 | 3.3% | -27.8% |
| 1989 | 3.2% | -1.9% |
| 1990 | 5.0% | +54.1% |
| 1991 | 3.3% | -34.1% |
| 1992 | 3.6% | +10.0% |
| 1993 | 3.2% | -12.6% |
| 1994 | 3.6% | +14.9% |
| 1995 | 4.8% | +30.9% |
| 1996 | 4.8% | +1.5% |
| 1997 | 4.5% | -7.7% |
| 1998 | 4.9% | +9.6% |
| 1999 | 4.5% | -7.0% |
| 2000 | 4.6% | +1.7% |
| 2001 | 3.9% | -15.9% |
| 2002 | 2.8% | -28.9% |
| 2003 | 3.4% | +21.4% |
| 2004 | 3.6% | +8.3% |
| 2005 | 4.5% | +24.9% |
| 2006 | 4.0% | -11.7% |
| 2007 | 4.3% | +7.3% |
| 2008 | 3.8% | -10.7% |
| 2009 | 4.0% | +4.1% |
| 2010 | 4.6% | +13.9% |
| 2011 | 4.4% | -4.1% |
| 2012 | 5.4% | +22.6% |
| 2013 | 4.3% | -18.7% |
| 2014 | 4.4% | +1.5% |
| 2015 | 4.8% | +8.6% |
| 2016 | 5.0% | +4.4% |
| 2017 | 5.2% | +3.5% |
| 2018 | 6.2% | +19.2% |
| 2019 | 5.2% | -15.5% |
| 2020 | 9.1% | +74.2% |
| 2021 | 9.7% | +6.8% |
| 2022 | 7.8% | -19.3% |
| 2023 | 8.3% | +6.0% |
| 2024 | 8.7% | +4.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 6.4% | 6.2% | 6.6% | 2 |
| 1980s | 4.7% | 3.2% | 6.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.2% | 3.2% | 5.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.9% | 2.8% | 4.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.9% | 4.3% | 6.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 8.7% | 7.8% | 9.7% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa
- 10 Switzerland 21.0% compare
- 11 Guinea-Bissau 20.7% compare
- 12 United States 19.8% compare
- 13 Cyprus 19.6% compare
- 14 Bermuda 19.3% compare
- 15 Haiti 19.1% compare
- 16 Burkina Faso 15.4% compare
More economy & growth data for Sub-Saharan Africa
- Gross capital formation (constant 2015 US$), per capita 407.9 constant 2015 US$ per person (2025)
- Households and NPISHs Final consumption expenditure (constant 2015) 4.36 % change on previous year (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate 4.54 % change on previous year (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (current US$), per capita 466.42 current US$ per person (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.2788 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (current US$), annual growth rate 8.19 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross capital formation (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate 5.43 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross capital formation (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.2311 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Gross capital formation (current US$), per capita 386.71 current US$ per person (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (constant 2015 US$), per unit of GDP 0.2516 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is insurance and financial services in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Insurance and financial services in Sub-Saharan Africa was 8.7% in 2024, according to Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest insurance and financial services recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 9.7% in 2021.
- What is the lowest insurance and financial services recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.8% in 2002.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa rank for insurance and financial services?
- Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 13th out of 45 groups with data for 2024.
- Is insurance and financial services rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 96.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Insurance and financial services (% of service exports, BoP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Insurance and financial services cover various types of insurance provided to nonresidents by resident insurance enterprises and vice versa, and financial intermediary and auxiliary services (except those of insurance enterprises and pension funds) exchanged between residents and nonresidents. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of service exports which are services provided by residents to non-residents.