Global military expenditure is dominated by the United States and China, with 49% of total spending between them. According to the most recent report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, global military spending reached US$2.4 trillion in 2023, a 6.8% increase on 2022.
Africa’s military expenditure is comparatively low. In 2023, African countries spent a total of US$51.6 billion, accounting for 2.1% of the world total. Still, this figure was a huge jump of 22% from the previous year. Two countries in Africa – the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and South Sudan – registered the highest year-on-year increases in the world.
The growth in spending is also reflected in overall government budget priorities. The average military spending as a share of government expenditure by African countries increased from 6.6% in 2022 to 7.2% in 2023, a rise of 0.6 percentage points.
