Manufacturing, value added in Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa: Manufacturing, value added was 9.6% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Manufacturing, value added in Sub-Saharan Africa, 1981–2025
Source: Country official statistics, National Statistical Offices (NSOs). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Sub-Saharan Africa recorded 9.6% for manufacturing, value added in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 45 years on record.
The figure is down 3.2% on the previous year and down 6.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, manufacturing, value added in Sub-Saharan Africa peaked at 17.9% in 1981 and was at its lowest, 9.6%, in 2025.
That places Sub-Saharan Africa 39th out of 47 groups with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 45 years of available data.
Manufacturing, value added in Sub-Saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 17.9% | — |
| 1982 | 17.2% | -4.1% |
| 1983 | 17.0% | -1.2% |
| 1984 | 15.0% | -11.4% |
| 1985 | 14.5% | -3.7% |
| 1986 | 15.3% | +6.0% |
| 1987 | 15.7% | +2.2% |
| 1988 | 16.2% | +3.3% |
| 1989 | 15.9% | -1.6% |
| 1990 | 16.0% | +0.7% |
| 1991 | 15.8% | -1.3% |
| 1992 | 16.5% | +4.2% |
| 1993 | 16.2% | -1.6% |
| 1994 | 17.2% | +6.1% |
| 1995 | 17.5% | +1.4% |
| 1996 | 16.7% | -4.3% |
| 1997 | 16.7% | +0.3% |
| 1998 | 16.0% | -4.6% |
| 1999 | 14.4% | -9.9% |
| 2000 | 13.9% | -3.1% |
| 2001 | 13.9% | -0.4% |
| 2002 | 12.9% | -6.9% |
| 2003 | 13.3% | +2.7% |
| 2004 | 13.0% | -2.5% |
| 2005 | 12.3% | -5.3% |
| 2006 | 11.1% | -9.7% |
| 2007 | 10.8% | -2.3% |
| 2008 | 10.3% | -4.5% |
| 2009 | 10.6% | +2.9% |
| 2010 | 9.8% | -8.2% |
| 2011 | 9.8% | +0.7% |
| 2012 | 9.7% | -1.0% |
| 2013 | 10.1% | +3.4% |
| 2014 | 10.2% | +1.5% |
| 2015 | 10.2% | +0.4% |
| 2016 | 10.3% | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 10.3% | +0.7% |
| 2018 | 10.4% | +0.9% |
| 2019 | 10.1% | -3.5% |
| 2020 | 9.7% | -4.1% |
| 2021 | 10.0% | +3.7% |
| 2022 | 10.1% | +1.1% |
| 2023 | 10.2% | +0.8% |
| 2024 | 9.9% | -2.7% |
| 2025 | 9.6% | -3.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 16.1% | 14.5% | 17.9% | 9 |
| 1990s | 16.3% | 14.4% | 17.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 12.2% | 10.3% | 13.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 10.1% | 9.7% | 10.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 9.9% | 9.6% | 10.2% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa
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)
- 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$), per unit of GDP 0.2382 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Gross fixed capital formation (current US$), per capita 384.35 current US$ per person (2025)
- Gross fixed capital formation (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate 3.61 % change on previous year (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.2788 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is manufacturing, value added in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Manufacturing, value added in Sub-Saharan Africa was 9.6% in 2025, according to Country official statistics, National Statistical Offices (NSOs).
- What is the highest manufacturing, value added recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 17.9% in 1981.
- What is the lowest manufacturing, value added recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.6% in 2025.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa rank for manufacturing, value added?
- Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 39th out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is manufacturing, value added rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Country official statistics, National Statistical Offices (NSOs), published as part of Manufacturing, value added (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 45 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Manufacturing includes industries classified in ISIC (Rev. 3) major division C and is defined as the physical or chemical transformation of materials or components into new products. Value added is the contribution to the economy by a producer or an industry or an institutional sector, which is estimated by the total value of output produced and deducting the total value of intermediate consumption of goods and services used to produce that output. 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.