Sub-Saharan Africa vs Tonga: Food imports (% of merchandise imports)
Food imports (% of merchandise imports) over time
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tonga
How they compare
Tonga currently reports 29.9% against 12.3% in Sub-Saharan Africa, a difference of 17.6%.
That makes Tonga's figure about 2.4 times Sub-Saharan Africa's.
Across all 27 years both countries report, Tonga has been ahead every year.
Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 17th and Tonga ranks 16th of 47 groups.
Tonga has averaged higher in every one of the 4 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Sub-Saharan Africa | Tonga | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 10.5% | 34.4% | 23.9% | Tonga |
| 2000s | 12.3% | 23.3% | 11.0% | Tonga |
| 2010s | 13.3% | 27.7% | 14.4% | Tonga |
| 2020s | 13.7% | 30.1% | 16.4% | Tonga |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher food imports, Sub-Saharan Africa or Tonga?
- Tonga, at 29.9% against 12.3% in Sub-Saharan Africa as of 2025.
- What is the difference in food imports between Sub-Saharan Africa and Tonga?
- 17.6%, with Tonga ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Sub-Saharan Africa and Tonga?
- 27 years are reported by both, from 1975 to 2023.
- How do Sub-Saharan Africa and Tonga rank globally for food imports?
- Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 17th and Tonga ranks 16th of 47 groups.
- Where does this data come from?
- Comtrade database, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Statistics Division, published as Food imports (% of merchandise imports). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Food comprises the commodities in SITC (Rev. 3) sections 0 (food and live animals), 1 (beverages and tobacco), and 4 (animal and vegetable oils and fats) and division 22 (oil seeds, oil nuts, and oil kernels). This indicator is expressed as a percentage of merchandise imports which is comprised of goods whose economic ownership is changed between a non-resident and a resident and that are not included in the following specific categories: goods under merchanting, non-monetary gold, and parts of travel, construction, and government goods and services n.i.e.