What is the highest merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current us$), per unit recorded in Africa Western and Central?

The highest recorded value was 0.2485 current US$ per US$ of GDP in 1978.

What is the lowest merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current us$), per unit recorded in Africa Western and Central?

The lowest recorded value was 0.0839 current US$ per US$ of GDP in 1980.

How does Africa Western and Central rank for merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current us$), per unit?

Africa Western and Central ranks 38th out of 44 groups with data for 2023.

Is merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current us$), per unit rising or falling in Africa Western and Central?

Over the last ten years it is down 3.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.

Merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current US$), per unit in Africa Western and Central

Name: Merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current US$), per unit in Africa Western and Central
Creator: Statizoid (derived)
License: Derived by Statizoid from the sources named on the page

Africa Western and Central: Merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current US$), per unit was 0.189 current US$ per US$ of GDP in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)

0.189 current US$ per US$ of GDP

Change on year

up 18.1%

Rank

38th

of 44 groups

All-time high

0.2485 current US$ per US$ of GDP

in 1978

All-time low

0.0839 current US$ per US$ of GDP

in 1980

Years of data

1960–2023

Merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current US$), per unit in Africa Western and Central, 1960–2023

Source: Statizoid (derived). Measured in current US$ per US$ of GDP.

Analysis

The most recent figure for merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current us$), per unit in Africa Western and Central is 0.189 current US$ per US$ of GDP, measured in 2023.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 18.1% on the previous year and down 3.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current us$), per unit in Africa Western and Central peaked at 0.2485 current US$ per US$ of GDP in 1978 and was at its lowest, 0.0839 current US$ per US$ of GDP, in 1980.

That places Africa Western and Central 38th out of 44 groups with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.

Merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current US$), per unit in Africa Western and Central, year by year

Annual values for Merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current US$), per unit of GDP in Africa Western and Central, 1960 to 2023.
Year	current US$ per US$ of GDP	Change
1960	0.1155 current US$ per US$ of GDP	—
1961	0.1192 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+3.2%
1962	0.1124 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-5.7%
1963	0.1174 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+4.4%
1964	0.1199 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+2.1%
1965	0.1203 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+0.3%
1966	0.1167 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-3.0%
1967	0.1285 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+10.1%
1968	0.1204 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-6.3%
1969	0.1225 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+1.8%
1970	0.1111 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-9.3%
1971	0.1435 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+29.1%
1972	0.1269 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-11.5%
1973	0.1323 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+4.3%
1974	0.1406 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+6.2%
1975	0.1861 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+32.4%
1976	0.1891 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+1.6%
1977	0.2386 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+26.2%
1978	0.2485 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+4.2%
1979	0.1861 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-25.1%
1980	0.0839 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-54.9%
1981	0.129 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+53.8%
1982	0.1119 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-13.3%
1983	0.1185 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+5.9%
1984	0.0997 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-15.9%
1985	0.104 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+4.4%
1986	0.115 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+10.5%
1987	0.1233 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+7.2%
1988	0.1231 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-0.1%
1989	0.1322 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+7.4%
1990	0.1586 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+20.0%
1991	0.1552 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-2.1%
1992	0.2209 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+42.3%
1993	0.1862 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-15.7%
1994	0.1613 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-13.4%
1995	0.1205 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-25.3%
1996	0.0993 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-17.6%
1997	0.0934 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-6.0%
1998	0.1022 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+9.4%
1999	0.1978 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+93.6%
2000	0.1469 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-25.7%
2001	0.1608 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+9.5%
2002	0.1414 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-12.1%
2003	0.196 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+38.7%
2004	0.1977 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+0.9%
2005	0.1956 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-1.1%
2006	0.179 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-8.5%
2007	0.184 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+2.8%
2008	0.2076 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+12.8%
2009	0.1972 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-5.0%
2010	0.1957 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-0.8%
2011	0.216 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+10.4%
2012	0.1952 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-9.6%
2013	0.1953 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+0.1%
2014	0.1887 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-3.4%
2015	0.1754 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-7.1%
2016	0.1694 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-3.5%
2017	0.1822 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+7.6%
2018	0.1724 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-5.4%
2019	0.1341 current US$ per US$ of GDP	-22.2%
2020	0.136 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+1.4%
2021	0.1388 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+2.1%
2022	0.16 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+15.3%
2023	0.189 current US$ per US$ of GDP	+18.1%

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current US$), per unit in Africa Western and Central 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
1999	+93.6%	0.1022 current US$ per US$ of GDP	0.1978 current US$ per US$ of GDP

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1960s	0.1193 current US$ per US$ of GDP	0.1124 current US$ per US$ of GDP	0.1285 current US$ per US$ of GDP	10
1970s	0.1703 current US$ per US$ of GDP	0.1111 current US$ per US$ of GDP	0.2485 current US$ per US$ of GDP	10
1980s	0.1141 current US$ per US$ of GDP	0.0839 current US$ per US$ of GDP	0.1322 current US$ per US$ of GDP	10
1990s	0.1495 current US$ per US$ of GDP	0.0934 current US$ per US$ of GDP	0.2209 current US$ per US$ of GDP	10
2000s	0.1806 current US$ per US$ of GDP	0.1414 current US$ per US$ of GDP	0.2076 current US$ per US$ of GDP	10
2010s	0.1825 current US$ per US$ of GDP	0.1341 current US$ per US$ of GDP	0.216 current US$ per US$ of GDP	10
2020s	0.156 current US$ per US$ of GDP	0.136 current US$ per US$ of GDP	0.189 current US$ per US$ of GDP	4

Countries ranked near Africa Western and Central

35 Estonia 0.5501 current US$ per US$ of GDP compare
36 Thailand 0.5499 current US$ per US$ of GDP compare
37 Fiji 0.5455 current US$ per US$ of GDP compare
38 Saint Lucia 0.5399 current US$ per US$ of GDP compare
39 Montenegro 0.5339 current US$ per US$ of GDP compare
40 Maldives 0.5282 current US$ per US$ of GDP compare
41 Bulgaria 0.5227 current US$ per US$ of GDP compare

See the full ranking of 249 places →

More private sector data for Africa Western and Central

Merchandise trade 43.1% (2025)
Food imports 15.3% (2023)
Manufactures imports 54.3% (2023)
Merchandise imports 163.34 billion current US$ (2025)
Food exports 12.1% (2023)
Manufactures exports 7.0% (2023)
Merchandise exports 204.10 billion current US$ (2025)
Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 383.07 current US$ per person (2025)
Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.2394 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 20.81 % change on previous year (2025)

All data for Africa Western and Central →

Frequently asked questions

What is merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current us$), per unit in Africa Western and Central?: Merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current us$), per unit in Africa Western and Central was 0.189 current US$ per US$ of GDP in 2023, according to Statizoid (derived).
What is the highest merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current us$), per unit recorded in Africa Western and Central?: The highest recorded value was 0.2485 current US$ per US$ of GDP in 1978.
What is the lowest merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current us$), per unit recorded in Africa Western and Central?: The lowest recorded value was 0.0839 current US$ per US$ of GDP in 1980.
How does Africa Western and Central rank for merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current us$), per unit?: Africa Western and Central ranks 38th out of 44 groups with data for 2023.
Is merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current us$), per unit rising or falling in Africa Western and Central?: Over the last ten years it is down 3.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Africa Western and Central data come from?: The figures come from Statizoid (derived), published as part of Merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current US$), per unit of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current US$), per unit in Africa Western and Central. Statizoid, drawing on Statizoid (derived). Retrieved 14 September 2026, from https://private-sector.statizoid.com/stat/merchandise-imports-by-the-reporting-economy-current-us-per-unit-of-gdp/africa-western-and-central/

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How this figure is calculated

Merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current US$) divided by GDP (current US$), matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.

Merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current US$) ÷ GDP (current US$)

Computed from

Merchandise imports by the reporting economy Staff estimates, World Bank (WB)
GDP Country official statistics, National Statistical Organizations and/or Central Banks

Statizoid computes this series; the underlying measurements belong to the publishers named above. The arithmetic is applied to every country and year where both inputs report, and nothing is estimated unless the page says so.

About this data

Indicator: Merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current US$), per unit of GDP
Unit: current US$ per US$ of GDP
Source: Statizoid (derived)
Licence: Derived by Statizoid from the sources named on the page
Coverage: 249 places, 12,916 data points, 1960–2023
Last refreshed: 21 August 2026

Merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current US$) divided by GDP (current US$), matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.