Armed forces personnel in Malawi
Malawi: Armed forces personnel was 15,000 in 2020. ▲ Rising
Armed forces personnel in Malawi, 1985–2020
Source: The Military Balance - International Institute for Strategic Studies, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2020, armed forces personnel in Malawi stood at 15,000. That is the highest value across all 33 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 183.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel in Malawi peaked at 15,000 in 2017 and was at its lowest, 5,300, in 1985.
Malawi ranks 117th of 173 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.
Armed forces personnel in Malawi, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 5,300 | — |
| 1989 | 7,000 | +32.1% |
| 1990 | 7,000 | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 8,000 | +14.3% |
| 1992 | 10,000 | +25.0% |
| 1993 | 10,000 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 10,000 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 9,500 | -5.0% |
| 1996 | 10,800 | +13.7% |
| 1997 | 6,000 | -44.4% |
| 1998 | 6,000 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 6,000 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 6,000 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 6,800 | +13.3% |
| 2002 | 6,800 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 6,800 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 6,000 | -11.8% |
| 2005 | 7,000 | +16.7% |
| 2006 | 7,000 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 7,000 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 7,000 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 5,300 | -24.3% |
| 2010 | 5,300 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 6,800 | +28.3% |
| 2012 | 6,800 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 6,800 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 6,800 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 6,800 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 14,900 | +119.1% |
| 2017 | 15,000 | +0.7% |
| 2018 | 14,700 | -2.0% |
| 2019 | 15,000 | +2.0% |
| 2020 | 15,000 | +0.0% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 15,000 is below the median for low income countries, which is 35,000, 43% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 15,000 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 16,000, 94% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 6,150 | 5,300 | 7,000 | 2 |
| 1990s | 8,330 | 6,000 | 10,800 | 10 |
| 2000s | 6,570 | 5,300 | 7,000 | 10 |
| 2010s | 9,890 | 5,300 | 15,000 | 10 |
| 2020s | 15,000 | 15,000 | 15,000 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More reference data data for Malawi
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.1596 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.09 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 3.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.3426 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 3.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5353 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.6012 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 4.92 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 16.7 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.87 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel in Malawi?
- Armed forces personnel in Malawi was 15,000 in 2020, according to The Military Balance - International Institute for Strategic Studies, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest armed forces personnel recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 15,000 in 2017.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 5,300 in 1985.
- How does Malawi rank for armed forces personnel?
- Malawi ranks 117th out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 183.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from The Military Balance - International Institute for Strategic Studies, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Armed forces personnel. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 33 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Armed forces personnel are active duty military personnel, including paramilitary forces if their training, organization, equipment, and control suggest they may be used to support or replace regular military forces.