Military spending as a share of GDP in Yemen
Yemen: Military spending as a share of GDP was 8.6% in 2016. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2016)
8.6%
Change on year
up 24.3%
World rank
2nd
of 172 countries
All-time high
14.6%
in 1991
All-time low
0.9%
in 1962
Years of data
91
1926–2016
Military spending as a share of GDP in Yemen, 1926–2016
Source: Barnum et al. - Global Military Spending Dataset (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Yemen recorded 8.6% for military spending as a share of gdp in 2016.
That represents a change of up 24.3% on the previous year and up 178.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military spending as a share of gdp in Yemen peaked at 14.6% in 1991 and was at its lowest, 0.9%, in 1962.
That places Yemen 2nd out of 172 countries with data for 2016, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Military spending as a share of GDP in Yemen, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1926 | 1.5% | — |
| 1927 | 1.6% | +5.3% |
| 1928 | 1.6% | +2.8% |
| 1929 | 1.8% | +7.0% |
| 1930 | 1.7% | -1.8% |
| 1931 | 1.9% | +11.2% |
| 1932 | 1.9% | +1.2% |
| 1933 | 1.9% | -3.6% |
| 1934 | 2.4% | +27.7% |
| 1935 | 2.3% | -4.2% |
| 1936 | 2.4% | +3.2% |
| 1937 | 2.3% | -3.3% |
| 1938 | 2.5% | +10.4% |
| 1939 | 2.5% | +0.1% |
| 1940 | 2.6% | +3.5% |
| 1941 | 2.5% | -6.0% |
| 1942 | 2.4% | -3.0% |
| 1943 | 2.3% | -2.2% |
| 1944 | 2.4% | +0.8% |
| 1945 | 2.5% | +8.0% |
| 1946 | 2.1% | -15.9% |
| 1947 | 1.9% | -13.3% |
| 1948 | 1.6% | -13.5% |
| 1949 | 1.8% | +11.9% |
| 1950 | 1.7% | -7.6% |
| 1951 | 1.6% | -6.2% |
| 1952 | 1.6% | +4.5% |
| 1953 | 1.5% | -5.0% |
| 1954 | 1.6% | +2.8% |
| 1955 | 1.5% | -7.3% |
| 1956 | 1.5% | +5.2% |
| 1957 | 1.5% | -5.8% |
| 1958 | 1.5% | +0.4% |
| 1959 | 1.3% | -9.7% |
| 1960 | 1.2% | -7.1% |
| 1961 | 1.2% | +0.4% |
| 1962 | 0.9% | -25.2% |
| 1963 | 1.7% | +89.6% |
| 1964 | 1.6% | -6.4% |
| 1965 | 1.9% | +13.3% |
| 1966 | 1.3% | -32.3% |
| 1967 | 1.7% | +34.0% |
| 1968 | 2.2% | +31.7% |
| 1969 | 2.2% | -2.4% |
| 1970 | 1.8% | -17.2% |
| 1971 | 1.7% | -5.3% |
| 1972 | 1.8% | +8.9% |
| 1973 | 1.8% | -4.0% |
| 1974 | 2.1% | +19.2% |
| 1975 | 2.4% | +13.5% |
| 1976 | 3.0% | +23.2% |
| 1977 | 3.4% | +16.3% |
| 1978 | 3.9% | +13.8% |
| 1979 | 7.5% | +92.7% |
| 1980 | 6.7% | -11.6% |
| 1981 | 7.8% | +17.5% |
| 1982 | 8.7% | +10.7% |
| 1983 | 8.6% | -0.6% |
| 1984 | 7.3% | -15.0% |
| 1985 | 5.5% | -25.4% |
| 1986 | 5.3% | -3.6% |
| 1987 | 5.5% | +4.6% |
| 1988 | 8.1% | +48.1% |
| 1989 | 10.9% | +34.4% |
| 1990 | 14.5% | +32.9% |
| 1991 | 14.6% | +0.6% |
| 1992 | 14.0% | -4.3% |
| 1993 | 12.1% | -13.3% |
| 1994 | 9.6% | -21.0% |
| 1995 | 6.2% | -35.9% |
| 1996 | 4.7% | -24.0% |
| 1997 | 4.3% | -8.3% |
| 1998 | 4.0% | -7.6% |
| 1999 | 3.9% | -1.4% |
| 2000 | 4.0% | +3.1% |
| 2001 | 4.1% | +2.8% |
| 2002 | 4.4% | +5.8% |
| 2003 | 4.2% | -3.0% |
| 2004 | 4.0% | -4.8% |
| 2005 | 2.9% | -29.1% |
| 2006 | 3.1% | +7.6% |
| 2007 | 4.0% | +28.4% |
| 2008 | 4.1% | +3.4% |
| 2009 | 3.8% | -8.4% |
| 2010 | 4.2% | +12.7% |
| 2011 | 4.3% | +2.2% |
| 2012 | 4.8% | +10.8% |
| 2013 | 5.3% | +10.5% |
| 2014 | 5.8% | +9.3% |
| 2015 | 6.9% | +19.7% |
| 2016 | 8.6% | +24.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920s | 1.6% | 1.5% | 1.8% | 4 |
| 1930s | 2.2% | 1.7% | 2.5% | 10 |
| 1940s | 2.2% | 1.6% | 2.6% | 10 |
| 1950s | 1.5% | 1.3% | 1.7% | 10 |
| 1960s | 1.6% | 0.9% | 2.2% | 10 |
| 1970s | 2.9% | 1.7% | 7.5% | 10 |
| 1980s | 7.4% | 5.3% | 10.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 8.8% | 3.9% | 14.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.9% | 2.9% | 4.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.7% | 4.2% | 8.6% | 7 |
Countries ranked near Yemen
- 1 Syrian Arab Republic 10.7% compare
- 3 Oman 8.3% compare
- 4 Libya 7.7% compare
- 5 Saudi Arabia 6.7% compare
More economy & growth data for Yemen
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 3.38 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 5.5 Percent per annum (2029)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current US$), annual -21 % change on previous year (2018)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current US$), per 0.2544 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2018)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current US$), per 161.28 current US$ per person (2018)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current LCU), annual 13.57 % change on previous year (2018)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current LCU), per 136.35 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2018)
- Industry (including construction), value added (current LCU), per 86,430 current LCU per person (2018)
- Industry (including construction), value added (constant 2015 US$) -1.12 % change on previous year (2018)
- Industry (including construction), value added (constant 2015 US$) 0.4332 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2018)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military spending as a share of gdp in Yemen?
- Military spending as a share of gdp in Yemen was 8.6% in 2016, 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 Yemen?
- The highest recorded value was 14.6% in 1991.
- What is the lowest military spending as a share of gdp recorded in Yemen?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.9% in 1962.
- How does Yemen rank for military spending as a share of gdp?
- Yemen ranks 2nd out of 172 countries with data for 2016.
- Is military spending as a share of gdp rising or falling in Yemen?
- Over the last ten years it is up 178.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Yemen 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).