Insurance and financial services in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: Insurance and financial services was 32.7% in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Insurance and financial services in Sierra Leone, 1977–2024
Source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of commercial service exports.
Analysis
The most recent figure for insurance and financial services in Sierra Leone is 32.7%, measured in 2024.
The figure is down 16.7% on the previous year and up 4,670.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, insurance and financial services in Sierra Leone peaked at 48.2% in 2021 and was at its lowest, -23.7%, in 2022.
That places Sierra Leone 5th out of 190 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Insurance and financial services in Sierra Leone, year by year
| Year | % of commercial service exports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1977 | 0.4% | — |
| 1978 | 0.5% | +10.2% |
| 1979 | 0.2% | -56.0% |
| 1991 | 0.1% | -30.3% |
| 1992 | 0.1% | -5.9% |
| 1993 | 0.1% | -35.5% |
| 1994 | 0.2% | +147.7% |
| 1995 | 0.3% | +27.9% |
| 1996 | 0.2% | -35.0% |
| 1997 | 0.2% | +6.7% |
| 1998 | 0.3% | +41.1% |
| 1999 | 0.1% | -54.0% |
| 2000 | 0.1% | -44.3% |
| 2001 | 0.1% | -3.4% |
| 2002 | 1.0% | +1469.9% |
| 2003 | 0.2% | -79.8% |
| 2004 | 0.8% | +280.1% |
| 2005 | 3.0% | +279.9% |
| 2006 | 6.1% | +103.9% |
| 2007 | 2.0% | -67.6% |
| 2008 | 1.7% | -13.8% |
| 2009 | 0.8% | -54.6% |
| 2010 | 1.5% | +92.4% |
| 2011 | 0.6% | -61.9% |
| 2012 | 0.6% | +11.5% |
| 2013 | 0.4% | -30.9% |
| 2014 | 0.7% | +57.7% |
| 2015 | 2.0% | +189.3% |
| 2016 | 9.6% | +382.6% |
| 2017 | 8.6% | -9.7% |
| 2018 | 8.7% | +1.1% |
| 2019 | 6.5% | -25.2% |
| 2020 | 7.9% | +20.8% |
| 2021 | 48.2% | +510.2% |
| 2022 | -23.7% | -149.2% |
| 2023 | 39.3% | -265.7% |
| 2024 | 32.7% | -16.7% |
Sierra Leone compared with similar countries
- Sierra Leone's 32.7% is above the median for low income countries, which is 2.9%, 11.4× the median. (21 countries reporting)
- Sierra Leone's 32.7% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3.3%, 9.9× the median. (45 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Insurance and financial services in Sierra Leone changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | +1469.9% | 0.1% | 1.0% |
| 2021 | +510.2% | 7.9% | 48.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 0.4% | 0.2% | 0.5% | 3 |
| 1990s | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.3% | 9 |
| 2000s | 1.6% | 0.1% | 6.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.9% | 0.4% | 9.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 20.9% | -23.7% | 48.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sierra Leone
- 2 Liberia 71.7% compare
- 3 Luxembourg 60.1% compare
- 4 Cayman Islands 55.2% compare
- 6 Bahrain 31.3% compare
- 7 Hong Kong, China 26.9% compare
- 8 Nigeria 25.3% compare
More private sector data for Sierra Leone
- Merchandise trade 45.9% (2025)
- Food imports 32.3% (2018)
- Manufactures imports 63.9% (2018)
- Merchandise imports 1.89 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 45.6% (2018)
- Manufactures exports 25.1% (2018)
- Merchandise exports 1.53 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 173.93 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.2055 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 6.75 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is insurance and financial services in Sierra Leone?
- Insurance and financial services in Sierra Leone was 32.7% in 2024, according to Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest insurance and financial services recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The highest recorded value was 48.2% in 2021.
- What is the lowest insurance and financial services recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The lowest recorded value was -23.7% in 2022.
- How does Sierra Leone rank for insurance and financial services?
- Sierra Leone ranks 5th out of 190 countries with data for 2024.
- Is insurance and financial services rising or falling in Sierra Leone?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4,670.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Sierra Leone data come from?
- The figures come from Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Insurance and financial services (% of commercial service exports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Financial services covers services related to financial intermediation, financial risk management, liquidity transformation or auxiliary financial activities. It also includes insurance and pension scheme services which are services related to providing life insurance and annuities, non-life insurance, reinsurance, pensions, standardised guarantees and auxiliary services to insurance, pension schemes, and standardised guarantee schemes. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of service exports which are commercial services provided by residents to non-residents.