Travel services in Africa Western and Central
Africa Western and Central: Travel services was 15.3% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Travel services in Africa Western and Central, 1977–2024
Source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of commercial service exports.
Analysis
Africa Western and Central recorded 15.3% for travel services in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 33.3% on the previous year and down 53.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, travel services in Africa Western and Central peaked at 46.9% in 1986 and was at its lowest, 10.2%, in 1979.
Africa Western and Central ranks 43rd of 45 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 48 years of available data.
Travel services in Africa Western and Central, year by year
| Year | % of commercial service exports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1977 | 19.6% | — |
| 1978 | 12.0% | -38.8% |
| 1979 | 10.2% | -14.5% |
| 1980 | 12.2% | +19.0% |
| 1981 | 19.9% | +63.6% |
| 1982 | 22.3% | +12.1% |
| 1983 | 23.1% | +3.4% |
| 1984 | 14.3% | -38.2% |
| 1985 | 14.7% | +3.2% |
| 1986 | 46.9% | +218.7% |
| 1987 | 27.0% | -42.5% |
| 1988 | 17.3% | -35.8% |
| 1989 | 10.5% | -39.4% |
| 1990 | 11.8% | +12.2% |
| 1991 | 13.0% | +10.6% |
| 1992 | 12.6% | -2.9% |
| 1993 | 11.8% | -6.9% |
| 1994 | 10.8% | -8.2% |
| 1995 | 11.5% | +6.8% |
| 1996 | 13.1% | +13.7% |
| 1997 | 13.8% | +5.4% |
| 1998 | 18.8% | +35.7% |
| 1999 | 17.8% | -5.1% |
| 2000 | 17.9% | +0.7% |
| 2001 | 19.3% | +7.5% |
| 2002 | 20.6% | +6.8% |
| 2003 | 17.8% | -13.5% |
| 2004 | 16.2% | -9.0% |
| 2005 | 20.2% | +24.4% |
| 2006 | 23.0% | +14.1% |
| 2007 | 26.3% | +14.2% |
| 2008 | 31.9% | +21.3% |
| 2009 | 32.6% | +2.3% |
| 2010 | 24.9% | -23.6% |
| 2011 | 26.4% | +6.0% |
| 2012 | 26.1% | -1.0% |
| 2013 | 27.8% | +6.5% |
| 2014 | 32.7% | +17.4% |
| 2015 | 18.8% | -42.4% |
| 2016 | 31.9% | +69.3% |
| 2017 | 45.4% | +42.4% |
| 2018 | 37.7% | -17.0% |
| 2019 | 29.2% | -22.5% |
| 2020 | 12.3% | -58.0% |
| 2021 | 14.9% | +21.7% |
| 2022 | 27.1% | +82.0% |
| 2023 | 22.9% | -15.8% |
| 2024 | 15.3% | -33.3% |
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Travel services 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | +218.7% | 14.7% | 46.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 13.9% | 10.2% | 19.6% | 3 |
| 1980s | 20.8% | 10.5% | 46.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 13.5% | 10.8% | 18.8% | 10 |
| 2000s | 22.6% | 16.2% | 32.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 30.1% | 18.8% | 45.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 18.5% | 12.3% | 27.1% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Africa Western and Central
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)
Frequently asked questions
- What is travel services in Africa Western and Central?
- Travel services in Africa Western and Central was 15.3% in 2024, according to Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest travel services recorded in Africa Western and Central?
- The highest recorded value was 46.9% in 1986.
- What is the lowest travel services recorded in Africa Western and Central?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.2% in 1979.
- How does Africa Western and Central rank for travel services?
- Africa Western and Central ranks 43rd out of 45 groups with data for 2024.
- Is travel services rising or falling in Africa Western and Central?
- Over the last ten years it is down 53.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Africa Western and Central data come from?
- The figures come from Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Travel services (% of commercial service exports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 48 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Travel services cover goods and services for own use or to give away acquired from an economy by nonresidents during visits to that economy, or acquired from other economies by residents during visits to these other economies. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of service exports which are commercial services provided by residents to non-residents.