Military spending as a share of GDP in Syrian Arab Republic
Syrian Arab Republic: Military spending as a share of GDP was 4.1% in 2010. ▼ Falling
Latest (2010)
4.1%
Change on year
up 0.7%
World rank
16th
of 166 countries
All-time high
17.7%
in 1984
All-time low
3.6%
in 2008
Years of data
50
1960–2010
Military spending as a share of GDP in Syrian Arab Republic, 1960–2010
Source: Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2010, military spending as a share of gdp in Syrian Arab Republic stood at 4.1%.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.7% on the previous year and down 25.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military spending as a share of gdp in Syrian Arab Republic peaked at 17.7% in 1984 and was at its lowest, 3.6%, in 2008.
Syrian Arab Republic ranks 16th of 166 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 50 years of available data.
Military spending as a share of GDP in Syrian Arab Republic, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 10.5% | — |
| 1961 | 9.5% | -9.2% |
| 1962 | 13.5% | +41.1% |
| 1964 | 8.6% | -35.8% |
| 1965 | 8.9% | +2.7% |
| 1966 | 7.7% | -12.7% |
| 1967 | 8.2% | +6.0% |
| 1968 | 12.2% | +48.1% |
| 1969 | 10.8% | -11.0% |
| 1970 | 11.2% | +3.6% |
| 1971 | 8.4% | -24.8% |
| 1972 | 10.8% | +27.7% |
| 1973 | 15.1% | +39.9% |
| 1974 | 12.7% | -16.0% |
| 1975 | 15.9% | +26.0% |
| 1976 | 14.7% | -7.7% |
| 1977 | 14.5% | -1.5% |
| 1978 | 14.7% | +1.4% |
| 1979 | 15.9% | +8.3% |
| 1980 | 17.2% | +8.3% |
| 1981 | 14.5% | -15.7% |
| 1982 | 15.6% | +7.0% |
| 1983 | 14.6% | -5.9% |
| 1984 | 17.7% | +20.8% |
| 1985 | 16.6% | -6.4% |
| 1986 | 14.4% | -12.7% |
| 1987 | 11.2% | -22.4% |
| 1988 | 7.9% | -30.0% |
| 1989 | 8.0% | +1.5% |
| 1990 | 6.9% | -13.9% |
| 1991 | 10.4% | +51.8% |
| 1992 | 9.0% | -13.8% |
| 1993 | 7.2% | -19.5% |
| 1994 | 7.4% | +1.7% |
| 1995 | 6.9% | -5.6% |
| 1996 | 6.0% | -13.1% |
| 1997 | 5.9% | -2.6% |
| 1998 | 5.8% | -1.3% |
| 1999 | 5.8% | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 5.5% | -6.1% |
| 2001 | 5.5% | +0.5% |
| 2002 | 5.4% | -1.2% |
| 2003 | 6.2% | +15.4% |
| 2004 | 5.5% | -11.3% |
| 2005 | 5.0% | -9.3% |
| 2006 | 4.4% | -12.6% |
| 2007 | 4.1% | -6.7% |
| 2008 | 3.6% | -13.4% |
| 2009 | 4.0% | +13.4% |
| 2010 | 4.1% | +0.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 10.0% | 7.7% | 13.5% | 9 |
| 1970s | 13.4% | 8.4% | 15.9% | 10 |
| 1980s | 13.8% | 7.9% | 17.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 7.1% | 5.8% | 10.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.9% | 3.6% | 6.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.1% | 4.1% | 4.1% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Syrian Arab Republic
More economy & growth data for Syrian Arab Republic
- Exports of goods and services (current LCU), annual growth rate -6.19 % change on previous year (2022)
- Exports of goods and services (current LCU), per unit of GDP 254.16 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2022)
- Exports of goods and services (current LCU), per capita 268,590 current LCU per person (2022)
- Exports of goods and services (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate 30.69 % change on previous year (2022)
- Exports of goods and services (constant 2015 US$), per unit of GDP 0.2597 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2022)
- Exports of goods and services (constant 2015 US$), per capita 274.48 constant 2015 US$ per person (2022)
- Gross fixed capital formation (current US$), annual growth rate 34.98 % change on previous year (2022)
- Gross fixed capital formation (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.0444 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2022)
- Gross fixed capital formation (current US$), per capita 46.97 current US$ per person (2022)
- Gross fixed capital formation (current LCU), per unit of GDP 166.67 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military spending as a share of gdp in Syrian Arab Republic?
- Military spending as a share of gdp in Syrian Arab Republic was 4.1% in 2010, according to Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest military spending as a share of gdp recorded in Syrian Arab Republic?
- The highest recorded value was 17.7% in 1984.
- What is the lowest military spending as a share of gdp recorded in Syrian Arab Republic?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.6% in 2008.
- How does Syrian Arab Republic rank for military spending as a share of gdp?
- Syrian Arab Republic ranks 16th out of 166 countries with data for 2010.
- Is military spending as a share of gdp rising or falling in Syrian Arab Republic?
- Over the last ten years it is down 25.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Syrian Arab Republic data come from?
- The figures come from Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (2026) – 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 — 50 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total military expenditure divided by gross domestic product, expressed as a percentage.