Value of imported goods as a share of GDP in Botswana

Botswana: Value of imported goods as a share of GDP was 48.8% in 2014. ▼ Falling

Latest (2014)
48.8%
Change on year
down 4.2%
World rank
69th
of 193 countries
All-time high
74.2%
in 1981
All-time low
24.6%
in 1961
Years of data
55
1960–2014

Value of imported goods as a share of GDP in Botswana, 1960–2014

203040506070196019872014

Source: Fouquin and Hugot (2016) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

In 2014, value of imported goods as a share of gdp in Botswana stood at 48.8%.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 4.2% on the previous year and up 35.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, value of imported goods as a share of gdp in Botswana peaked at 74.2% in 1981 and was at its lowest, 24.6%, in 1961.

That places Botswana 69th out of 193 countries with data for 2014, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 55 years of available data.

Value of imported goods as a share of GDP in Botswana, year by year

Annual values for Value of imported goods as a share of GDP in Botswana, 1960 to 2014.
Year % Change
1960 30.4%
1961 24.6% -19.1%
1962 30.5% +24.2%
1963 30.4% -0.3%
1964 31.4% +3.2%
1965 50.7% +61.6%
1966 51.2% +0.9%
1967 53.4% +4.3%
1968 49.1% -8.1%
1969 59.2% +20.5%
1970 59.5% +0.6%
1971 65.1% +9.4%
1972 66.3% +1.8%
1973 67.9% +2.4%
1974 60.2% -11.2%
1975 60.9% +1.0%
1976 56.1% -7.9%
1977 63.2% +12.8%
1978 62.8% -0.7%
1979 65.6% +4.5%
1980 65.2% -0.6%
1981 74.2% +13.8%
1982 67.9% -8.5%
1983 62.7% -7.6%
1984 56.2% -10.4%
1985 52.0% -7.4%
1986 51.2% -1.6%
1987 47.7% -6.9%
1988 45.2% -5.1%
1989 48.6% +7.6%
1990 51.3% +5.5%
1991 49.4% -3.8%
1992 44.9% -9.1%
1993 42.6% -5.1%
1994 38.5% -9.6%
1995 40.4% +4.9%
1996 35.5% -12.0%
1997 45.0% +26.5%
1998 47.0% +4.5%
1999 40.1% -14.7%
2000 36.0% -10.3%
2001 33.0% -8.3%
2002 33.9% +2.9%
2003 32.6% -3.9%
2004 36.1% +10.7%
2005 31.8% -11.8%
2006 30.5% -4.3%
2007 37.2% +22.0%
2008 47.6% +28.1%
2009 46.1% -3.3%
2010 44.2% -3.9%
2011 46.4% +4.8%
2012 54.6% +17.8%
2013 50.9% -6.8%
2014 48.8% -4.2%

Botswana compared with similar countries

  • Botswana's 48.8% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 41.9%, 1.2× the median. (56 countries reporting)
  • Botswana's 48.8% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 34.7%, 1.4× the median. (46 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Value of imported goods as a share of GDP in Botswana 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.

YearChange FromTo
1965 +61.6% 31.4% 50.7%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 41.1% 24.6% 59.2% 10
1970s 62.8% 56.1% 67.9% 10
1980s 57.1% 45.2% 74.2% 10
1990s 43.5% 35.5% 51.3% 10
2000s 36.5% 30.5% 47.6% 10
2010s 49.0% 44.2% 54.6% 5

Countries ranked near Botswana

  1. 66 Montenegro 51.6% compare
  2. 67 Cyprus 49.6% compare
  3. 68 Malawi 49.2% compare
  4. 70 Bosnia and Herzegovina 48.3% compare
  5. 71 Barbados 48.2% compare
  6. 72 Mongolia 48.1% compare

See the full ranking of 193 places →

More economy & growth data for Botswana

All data for Botswana →

Frequently asked questions

What is value of imported goods as a share of gdp in Botswana?
Value of imported goods as a share of gdp in Botswana was 48.8% in 2014, according to Fouquin and Hugot (2016) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest value of imported goods as a share of gdp recorded in Botswana?
The highest recorded value was 74.2% in 1981.
What is the lowest value of imported goods as a share of gdp recorded in Botswana?
The lowest recorded value was 24.6% in 1961.
How does Botswana rank for value of imported goods as a share of gdp?
Botswana ranks 69th out of 193 countries with data for 2014.
Is value of imported goods as a share of gdp rising or falling in Botswana?
Over the last ten years it is up 35.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Botswana data come from?
The figures come from Fouquin and Hugot (2016) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Value of imported goods as a share of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Value of imported goods as a share of GDP in Botswana. Statizoid, drawing on Fouquin and Hugot (2016) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from https://economy.statizoid.com/stat/merchandise-imports-gdp-cepii/botswana/

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About this data

Indicator
Value of imported goods as a share of GDP
Unit
%
Source
Fouquin and Hugot (2016) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
193 places, 12,772 data points, 1827–2014
Last refreshed

Estimates correspond to merchandise import-to-GDP ratios for countries and regions. All ratios are taken at current prices. See source for more details.