Military spending as a share of GDP in Eswatini
Eswatini: Military spending as a share of GDP was 1.6% in 2019. ◆ Volatile
Military spending as a share of GDP in Eswatini, 1968–2019
Source: Barnum et al. - Global Military Spending Dataset (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
The most recent figure for military spending as a share of gdp in Eswatini is 1.6%, measured in 2019.
That represents a change of down 2.3% on the previous year and down 2.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military spending as a share of gdp in Eswatini peaked at 100.0% in 1968 and was at its lowest, 0.3%, in 1975.
That places Eswatini 68th out of 172 countries with data for 2019, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Military spending as a share of GDP in Eswatini, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1968 | 100.0% | — |
| 1969 | 100.0% | -0.0% |
| 1970 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1971 | 100.0% | -0.0% |
| 1972 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 99.9% | -0.1% |
| 1974 | 0.4% | -99.6% |
| 1975 | 0.3% | -15.4% |
| 1976 | 0.5% | +43.5% |
| 1977 | 0.9% | +92.0% |
| 1978 | 1.4% | +50.9% |
| 1979 | 1.6% | +13.9% |
| 1980 | 1.6% | +1.5% |
| 1981 | 1.6% | +2.5% |
| 1982 | 1.7% | +2.2% |
| 1983 | 1.3% | -24.5% |
| 1984 | 0.9% | -24.5% |
| 1985 | 0.8% | -14.3% |
| 1986 | 0.7% | -12.4% |
| 1987 | 0.6% | -10.0% |
| 1988 | 0.6% | -6.4% |
| 1989 | 0.6% | +7.2% |
| 1990 | 0.7% | +6.1% |
| 1991 | 0.7% | -0.5% |
| 1992 | 0.9% | +26.0% |
| 1993 | 1.0% | +16.3% |
| 1994 | 1.0% | -1.3% |
| 1995 | 1.0% | +1.7% |
| 1996 | 1.0% | -4.1% |
| 1997 | 1.0% | +2.3% |
| 1998 | 1.0% | +3.6% |
| 1999 | 1.0% | +2.1% |
| 2000 | 1.5% | +49.4% |
| 2001 | 1.0% | -34.1% |
| 2002 | 1.0% | -2.9% |
| 2003 | 1.1% | +10.0% |
| 2004 | 1.4% | +24.6% |
| 2005 | 1.4% | +2.1% |
| 2006 | 1.4% | +2.8% |
| 2007 | 1.5% | +7.4% |
| 2008 | 1.6% | +4.8% |
| 2009 | 1.7% | +4.9% |
| 2010 | 1.9% | +11.1% |
| 2011 | 1.9% | -0.6% |
| 2012 | 1.8% | -5.2% |
| 2013 | 1.8% | +0.2% |
| 2014 | 1.6% | -10.4% |
| 2015 | 1.6% | -0.8% |
| 2016 | 1.6% | +2.7% |
| 2017 | 1.6% | +1.2% |
| 2018 | 1.7% | +2.9% |
| 2019 | 1.6% | -2.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1970s | 40.5% | 0.3% | 100.0% | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.0% | 0.6% | 1.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.9% | 0.7% | 1.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.4% | 1.0% | 1.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.7% | 1.6% | 1.9% | 10 |
Countries ranked near Eswatini
More economy & growth data for Eswatini
- Services, value added (current US$), annual growth rate 8.42 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.5243 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Services, value added (current US$), per capita 2,154 current US$ per person (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), annual growth rate 5.88 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), per unit of GDP 9.38 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), per capita 38,532 current LCU per person (2025)
- Services, value added (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate 6.17 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (constant 2015 US$), per unit of GDP 0.5094 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Services, value added (constant 2015 US$), per capita 2,093 constant 2015 US$ per person (2025)
- Services, value added (constant LCU), per capita 32,525 constant LCU per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military spending as a share of gdp in Eswatini?
- Military spending as a share of gdp in Eswatini was 1.6% in 2019, according to Barnum et al. - Global Military Spending Dataset (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest military spending as a share of gdp recorded in Eswatini?
- The highest recorded value was 100.0% in 1968.
- What is the lowest military spending as a share of gdp recorded in Eswatini?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.3% in 1975.
- How does Eswatini rank for military spending as a share of gdp?
- Eswatini ranks 68th out of 172 countries with data for 2019.
- Is military spending as a share of gdp rising or falling in Eswatini?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Eswatini data come from?
- The figures come from Barnum et al. - Global Military Spending Dataset (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Military spending as a share of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Military spending measured as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP).