Military spending as a share of GDP in Kenya
Kenya: Military spending as a share of GDP was 1.7% in 2019. ▲ Rising
Latest (2019)
1.7%
Change on year
up 0.5%
World rank
64th
of 172 countries
All-time high
3.7%
in 1979
All-time low
0.3%
in 1963
Years of data
57
1963–2019
Military spending as a share of GDP in Kenya, 1963–2019
Source: Barnum et al. - Global Military Spending Dataset (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2019, military spending as a share of gdp in Kenya stood at 1.7%.
The figure is up 0.5% on the previous year and up 20.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military spending as a share of gdp in Kenya peaked at 3.7% in 1979 and was at its lowest, 0.3%, in 1963.
That places Kenya 64th out of 172 countries with data for 2019, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 57 years of available data.
Military spending as a share of GDP in Kenya, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1963 | 0.3% | — |
| 1964 | 0.6% | +89.9% |
| 1965 | 0.7% | +28.1% |
| 1966 | 0.8% | +13.7% |
| 1967 | 1.0% | +19.4% |
| 1968 | 0.9% | -7.7% |
| 1969 | 0.9% | -4.0% |
| 1970 | 0.9% | -3.3% |
| 1971 | 0.9% | +6.0% |
| 1972 | 1.1% | +15.9% |
| 1973 | 1.1% | +4.6% |
| 1974 | 1.1% | +0.7% |
| 1975 | 1.3% | +14.8% |
| 1976 | 1.3% | +4.0% |
| 1977 | 2.0% | +49.0% |
| 1978 | 1.9% | -4.7% |
| 1979 | 3.7% | +92.6% |
| 1980 | 3.0% | -17.1% |
| 1981 | 2.4% | -19.9% |
| 1982 | 2.4% | -2.9% |
| 1983 | 2.0% | -16.3% |
| 1984 | 1.8% | -10.0% |
| 1985 | 1.5% | -14.6% |
| 1986 | 1.4% | -5.8% |
| 1987 | 1.5% | +1.4% |
| 1988 | 1.5% | +5.7% |
| 1989 | 1.4% | -10.2% |
| 1990 | 1.3% | -4.3% |
| 1991 | 1.2% | -5.7% |
| 1992 | 1.2% | -2.9% |
| 1993 | 1.0% | -15.3% |
| 1994 | 1.0% | -4.0% |
| 1995 | 1.1% | +7.8% |
| 1996 | 1.0% | -5.4% |
| 1997 | 1.1% | +8.9% |
| 1998 | 1.2% | +7.4% |
| 1999 | 1.1% | -4.6% |
| 2000 | 1.1% | -3.3% |
| 2001 | 1.1% | -2.1% |
| 2002 | 1.0% | -7.9% |
| 2003 | 1.0% | -1.5% |
| 2004 | 1.1% | +9.6% |
| 2005 | 1.2% | +10.0% |
| 2006 | 1.2% | +4.1% |
| 2007 | 1.5% | +27.6% |
| 2008 | 1.6% | +3.8% |
| 2009 | 1.4% | -12.6% |
| 2010 | 1.4% | +0.1% |
| 2011 | 1.4% | +0.6% |
| 2012 | 1.5% | +9.2% |
| 2013 | 1.6% | +4.8% |
| 2014 | 1.6% | -0.1% |
| 2015 | 1.5% | -4.8% |
| 2016 | 1.6% | +7.7% |
| 2017 | 1.7% | +5.6% |
| 2018 | 1.7% | -3.8% |
| 2019 | 1.7% | +0.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.8% | 0.3% | 1.0% | 7 |
| 1970s | 1.5% | 0.9% | 3.7% | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.9% | 1.4% | 3.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.2% | 1.0% | 1.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.6% | 1.4% | 1.7% | 10 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
- 61 Guinea-Bissau 1.7% compare
- 62 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 1.7% compare
- 63 Georgia 1.7% compare
- 65 Central African Republic 1.7% compare
- 66 Guinea 1.7% compare
- 67 Serbia 1.6% compare
More economy & growth data for Kenya
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 3.28 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 5.26 Percent per annum (2029)
- Services, value added (current US$), annual growth rate 11.63 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.5505 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Services, value added (current US$), per capita 1,301 current US$ per person (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), annual growth rate 7.06 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), per unit of GDP 71.19 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), per capita 168,201 current LCU per person (2025)
- Services, value added (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate 5.03 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (constant 2015 US$), per unit of GDP 0.4984 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military spending as a share of gdp in Kenya?
- Military spending as a share of gdp in Kenya was 1.7% 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 Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 3.7% in 1979.
- What is the lowest military spending as a share of gdp recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.3% in 1963.
- How does Kenya rank for military spending as a share of gdp?
- Kenya ranks 64th out of 172 countries with data for 2019.
- Is military spending as a share of gdp rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is up 20.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Kenya 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
CSV · JSON — 57 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Military spending measured as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP).