Armed forces personnel in Kenya
Kenya: Armed forces personnel was 24,000 in 2020. ▲ Rising
Latest (2020)
24,000
Change on year
down 17.2%
World rank
96th
of 173 countries
All-time high
29,400
in 2001
All-time low
13,700
in 1985
Years of data
32
1985–2020
Armed forces personnel in Kenya, 1985–2020
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2020, armed forces personnel in Kenya stood at 24,000.
That represents a change of down 17.2% on the previous year and down 17.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel in Kenya peaked at 29,400 in 2001 and was at its lowest, 13,700, in 1985.
That places Kenya 96th out of 173 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 32 years of available data.
Armed forces personnel in Kenya, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 13,700 | — |
| 1989 | 20,000 | +46.0% |
| 1990 | 20,000 | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 20,000 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 24,000 | +20.0% |
| 1993 | 24,000 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 22,000 | -8.3% |
| 1995 | 29,200 | +32.7% |
| 1996 | 29,200 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 29,200 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 29,200 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 29,200 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 27,200 | -6.8% |
| 2001 | 29,400 | +8.1% |
| 2002 | 29,400 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 29,100 | -1.0% |
| 2004 | 29,000 | -0.3% |
| 2005 | 29,000 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 29,000 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 29,000 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 29,120 | +0.4% |
| 2010 | 29,120 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 29,100 | -0.1% |
| 2012 | 29,100 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 29,100 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 29,100 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 29,100 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 29,100 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 29,000 | -0.3% |
| 2018 | 29,100 | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 29,000 | -0.3% |
| 2020 | 24,000 | -17.2% |
Kenya compared with similar countries
- Kenya's 24,000 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 23,000, 1.0× the median. (43 countries reporting)
- Kenya's 24,000 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 16,000, 1.5× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 16,850 | 13,700 | 20,000 | 2 |
| 1990s | 25,600 | 20,000 | 29,200 | 10 |
| 2000s | 28,913 | 27,200 | 29,400 | 9 |
| 2010s | 29,082 | 29,000 | 29,120 | 10 |
| 2020s | 24,000 | 24,000 | 24,000 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
More reference data data for Kenya
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5379 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 12.22 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 14.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.377 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 14.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.8 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.1 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 58.05 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 68.95 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.05 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel in Kenya?
- Armed forces personnel in Kenya was 24,000 in 2020, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest armed forces personnel recorded in Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 29,400 in 2001.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 13,700 in 1985.
- How does Kenya rank for armed forces personnel?
- Kenya ranks 96th out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is down 17.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Kenya data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Armed forces personnel. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 32 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).