Military spending as a share of GDP in Somalia
Somalia: Military spending as a share of GDP was 1.9% in 2019. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2019)
1.9%
Change on year
up 18.7%
World rank
48th
of 172 countries
All-time high
6.9%
in 1979
All-time low
0.7%
in 1960
Years of data
60
1960–2019
Military spending as a share of GDP in Somalia, 1960–2019
Source: Barnum et al. - Global Military Spending Dataset (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Somalia recorded 1.9% for military spending as a share of gdp in 2019.
The figure is up 18.7% on the previous year and up 58.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military spending as a share of gdp in Somalia peaked at 6.9% in 1979 and was at its lowest, 0.7%, in 1960.
That places Somalia 48th 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 Somalia, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 0.7% | — |
| 1961 | 0.9% | +37.4% |
| 1962 | 1.2% | +29.3% |
| 1963 | 1.3% | +7.8% |
| 1964 | 1.4% | +13.5% |
| 1965 | 1.5% | +3.7% |
| 1966 | 1.6% | +8.8% |
| 1967 | 1.8% | +12.0% |
| 1968 | 1.9% | +3.6% |
| 1969 | 2.0% | +4.5% |
| 1970 | 2.2% | +13.1% |
| 1971 | 2.3% | +3.2% |
| 1972 | 2.4% | +5.4% |
| 1973 | 2.6% | +7.3% |
| 1974 | 2.7% | +5.7% |
| 1975 | 2.5% | -9.8% |
| 1976 | 2.6% | +5.4% |
| 1977 | 3.0% | +16.0% |
| 1978 | 6.4% | +111.4% |
| 1979 | 6.9% | +9.0% |
| 1980 | 6.8% | -2.3% |
| 1981 | 6.3% | -7.5% |
| 1982 | 5.9% | -5.7% |
| 1983 | 5.2% | -12.5% |
| 1984 | 4.6% | -11.8% |
| 1985 | 4.0% | -13.4% |
| 1986 | 3.2% | -19.3% |
| 1987 | 2.7% | -15.3% |
| 1988 | 3.0% | +9.9% |
| 1989 | 0.9% | -68.3% |
| 1990 | 1.0% | +11.5% |
| 1991 | 1.1% | +4.0% |
| 1992 | 1.1% | +2.8% |
| 1993 | 1.1% | -2.0% |
| 1994 | 1.1% | -3.5% |
| 1995 | 2.5% | +139.8% |
| 1996 | 2.3% | -10.5% |
| 1997 | 2.1% | -7.2% |
| 1998 | 2.2% | +2.3% |
| 1999 | 2.1% | -3.9% |
| 2000 | 2.0% | -5.9% |
| 2001 | 1.9% | -3.4% |
| 2002 | 1.8% | -4.8% |
| 2003 | 1.8% | -0.1% |
| 2004 | 1.7% | -6.2% |
| 2005 | 1.5% | -10.8% |
| 2006 | 1.4% | -5.9% |
| 2007 | 1.4% | -1.4% |
| 2008 | 1.3% | -5.0% |
| 2009 | 1.2% | -8.2% |
| 2010 | 1.2% | -3.5% |
| 2011 | 1.2% | -0.1% |
| 2012 | 1.1% | -10.4% |
| 2013 | 1.0% | -2.4% |
| 2014 | 1.2% | +18.4% |
| 2015 | 1.2% | +0.6% |
| 2016 | 1.3% | +8.7% |
| 2017 | 1.5% | +14.6% |
| 2018 | 1.6% | +6.5% |
| 2019 | 1.9% | +18.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.4% | 0.7% | 2.0% | 10 |
| 1970s | 3.4% | 2.2% | 6.9% | 10 |
| 1980s | 4.2% | 0.9% | 6.8% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.7% | 1.0% | 2.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.6% | 1.2% | 2.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.3% | 1.0% | 1.9% | 10 |
Countries ranked near Somalia
More economy & growth data for Somalia
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 1.52 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 4.5 Percent per annum (2029)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current US$), annual 37.94 % change on previous year (1986)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current US$), per 0.0966 current US$ per US$ of GDP (1986)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current US$), per 12.69 current US$ per person (1986)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current LCU), annual 79.33 % change on previous year (1986)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current LCU), per 12.51 current LCU per US$ of GDP (1986)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current LCU), per 1,644 current LCU per person (1986)
- GDP deflator (base year varies by country), annual growth rate 12.88 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross value added at basic prices (GVA) (current US$), annual growth -15.77 % change on previous year (1990)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military spending as a share of gdp in Somalia?
- Military spending as a share of gdp in Somalia was 1.9% 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 Somalia?
- The highest recorded value was 6.9% in 1979.
- What is the lowest military spending as a share of gdp recorded in Somalia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.7% in 1960.
- How does Somalia rank for military spending as a share of gdp?
- Somalia ranks 48th out of 172 countries with data for 2019.
- Is military spending as a share of gdp rising or falling in Somalia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 58.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Somalia 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 — 60 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).