Transport services (% of commercial service exports) in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income): Transport services (% of commercial service exports) was 25.2% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Transport services in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income), 1977–2025
Source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of commercial service exports.
Analysis
In 2025, transport services in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) stood at 25.2%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.7% on the previous year and down 6.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, transport services in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) peaked at 46.9% in 1980 and was at its lowest, 17.5%, in 2003.
That places Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) 12th out of 45 groups with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 49 years of available data.
Transport services (% of commercial service exports) in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income), year by year
| Year | % of commercial service exports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1977 | 37.8% | — |
| 1978 | 43.1% | +14.0% |
| 1979 | 46.8% | +8.6% |
| 1980 | 46.9% | +0.2% |
| 1981 | 39.9% | -15.0% |
| 1982 | 42.0% | +5.3% |
| 1983 | 42.4% | +0.9% |
| 1984 | 41.9% | -1.0% |
| 1985 | 46.4% | +10.8% |
| 1986 | 34.5% | -25.7% |
| 1987 | 29.7% | -13.8% |
| 1988 | 34.5% | +16.1% |
| 1989 | 25.3% | -26.7% |
| 1990 | 27.6% | +9.0% |
| 1991 | 28.9% | +4.6% |
| 1992 | 30.2% | +4.6% |
| 1993 | 28.9% | -4.2% |
| 1994 | 26.2% | -9.4% |
| 1995 | 27.9% | +6.5% |
| 1996 | 24.9% | -10.9% |
| 1997 | 26.3% | +5.8% |
| 1998 | 25.4% | -3.5% |
| 1999 | 23.1% | -9.2% |
| 2000 | 21.2% | -8.3% |
| 2001 | 21.0% | -0.9% |
| 2002 | 19.1% | -8.9% |
| 2003 | 17.5% | -8.6% |
| 2004 | 18.9% | +8.1% |
| 2005 | 31.1% | +65.0% |
| 2006 | 30.0% | -3.8% |
| 2007 | 28.8% | -3.9% |
| 2008 | 26.9% | -6.7% |
| 2009 | 25.8% | -4.1% |
| 2010 | 29.3% | +13.9% |
| 2011 | 27.7% | -5.5% |
| 2012 | 26.8% | -3.4% |
| 2013 | 26.1% | -2.4% |
| 2014 | 24.8% | -5.3% |
| 2015 | 27.0% | +9.0% |
| 2016 | 25.4% | -5.9% |
| 2017 | 19.8% | -22.1% |
| 2018 | 19.3% | -2.4% |
| 2019 | 22.7% | +17.5% |
| 2020 | 28.1% | +23.9% |
| 2021 | 29.0% | +3.0% |
| 2022 | 25.7% | -11.4% |
| 2023 | 27.0% | +5.3% |
| 2024 | 25.9% | -4.2% |
| 2025 | 25.2% | -2.7% |
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Transport services (% of commercial service exports) in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | +65.0% | 18.9% | 31.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 42.5% | 37.8% | 46.8% | 3 |
| 1980s | 38.4% | 25.3% | 46.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 26.9% | 23.1% | 30.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 24.0% | 17.5% | 31.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 24.9% | 19.3% | 29.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 26.8% | 25.2% | 29.0% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
- 9 Nigeria 51.0% compare
- 10 Iran 49.4% compare
- 11 Solomon Islands 48.8% compare
- 12 Denmark 48.8% compare
- 13 Kazakhstan 45.9% compare
- 14 Democratic Republic of Congo 45.2% compare
- 15 Lithuania 43.8% compare
More private sector data for Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
- Merchandise trade 44.5% (2025)
- Food imports 12.2% (2024)
- Manufactures imports 56.9% (2024)
- Merchandise imports 499.63 billion current US$ (2025)
- Commercial service imports 146.00 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 14.6% (2025)
- Manufactures exports 19.5% (2025)
- Merchandise exports 486.25 billion current US$ (2025)
- Commercial service exports 86.65 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 367.94 current US$ per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is transport services in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- Transport services in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) was 25.2% in 2025, according to Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest transport services recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- The highest recorded value was 46.9% in 1980.
- What is the lowest transport services recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- The lowest recorded value was 17.5% in 2003.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) rank for transport services?
- Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) ranks 12th out of 45 groups with data for 2025.
- Is transport services rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) data come from?
- The figures come from Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Transport services (% of commercial service exports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 49 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Transport is the process of carriage of people and objects from one location to another as well as related supporting and auxiliary services. Also included are postal and courier services. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of service exports which are commercial services provided by residents to non-residents.