Total natural resource rents in Liberia

Liberia: Total natural resource rents was 21.9% in 2021. ▼ Falling

Latest (2021)
21.9%
Change on year
up 25.5%
World rank
22nd
of 211 countries
All-time high
34.2%
in 2003
All-time low
14.0%
in 2018
Years of data
22
2000–2021

Total natural resource rents in Liberia, 2000–2021

01020302000201020212000: 17.8 % of GDP2001: 17.3 % of GDP2002: 23.9 % of GDP2003: 34.2 % of GDP2004: 19.8 % of GDP2005: 20.1 % of GDP2006: 17.6 % of GDP2007: 21.6 % of GDP2008: 21.8 % of GDP2009: 22.1 % of GDP2010: 18.4 % of GDP2011: 23.3 % of GDP2012: 26.7 % of GDP2013: 28.4 % of GDP2014: 26.2 % of GDP2015: 19.4 % of GDP2016: 20.1 % of GDP2017: 21.3 % of GDP2018: 14 % of GDP2019: 14.3 % of GDP2020: 17.5 % of GDP2021: 21.9 % of GDP

Source: The Changing Wealth of Nations, World Bank staff estimates, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.

Analysis

In 2021, total natural resource rents in Liberia stood at 21.9%.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 25.5% on the previous year and down 5.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, total natural resource rents in Liberia peaked at 34.2% in 2003 and was at its lowest, 14.0%, in 2018.

That places Liberia 22nd out of 211 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 22 years of available data.

Total natural resource rents in Liberia, year by year

Annual values for Total natural resource rents in Liberia, 2000 to 2021.
Year % of GDP Change
2000 17.8%
2001 17.3% -3.3%
2002 23.9% +38.5%
2003 34.2% +43.0%
2004 19.8% -42.1%
2005 20.1% +1.3%
2006 17.6% -12.0%
2007 21.6% +22.3%
2008 21.8% +0.9%
2009 22.1% +1.4%
2010 18.4% -16.8%
2011 23.3% +26.7%
2012 26.7% +14.8%
2013 28.4% +6.2%
2014 26.2% -7.7%
2015 19.4% -25.7%
2016 20.1% +3.4%
2017 21.3% +6.0%
2018 14.0% -34.2%
2019 14.3% +1.7%
2020 17.5% +22.5%
2021 21.9% +25.5%

Liberia compared with similar countries

  • Liberia's 21.9% is above the median for low income countries, which is 10.3%, 2.1× the median. (24 countries reporting)
  • Liberia's 21.9% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 7.7%, 2.9× the median. (48 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 21.6% 17.3% 34.2% 10
2010s 21.2% 14.0% 28.4% 10
2020s 19.7% 17.5% 21.9% 2

Countries ranked near Liberia

  1. 19 Brunei 24.3% compare
  2. 20 Equatorial Guinea 23.5% compare
  3. 21 Algeria 22.6% compare
  4. 23 Chad 21.3% compare
  5. 24 Uzbekistan 20.5% compare
  6. 25 Burkina Faso 20.1% compare

See the full ranking of 211 places →

More reference data data for Liberia

All data for Liberia →

Frequently asked questions

What is total natural resource rents in Liberia?
Total natural resource rents in Liberia was 21.9% in 2021, according to The Changing Wealth of Nations, World Bank staff estimates, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest total natural resource rents recorded in Liberia?
The highest recorded value was 34.2% in 2003.
What is the lowest total natural resource rents recorded in Liberia?
The lowest recorded value was 14.0% in 2018.
How does Liberia rank for total natural resource rents?
Liberia ranks 22nd out of 211 countries with data for 2021.
Is total natural resource rents rising or falling in Liberia?
Over the last ten years it is down 5.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Liberia data come from?
The figures come from The Changing Wealth of Nations, World Bank staff estimates, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Total natural resource rents. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Total natural resource rents in Liberia. Statizoid, drawing on The Changing Wealth of Nations, World Bank staff estimates, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/natural-resource-rents/liberia/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/natural-resource-rents/liberia/">Total natural resource rents in Liberia</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Total natural resource rents
Unit
% of GDP
Source
The Changing Wealth of Nations, World Bank staff estimates, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
211 places, 9,209 data points, 1970–2021
Last refreshed

Natural resources rents are estimated as the difference between the price of a commodity and the average cost of producing it. Total natural resources rents are the sum of oil rents, natural gas rents, coal rents, mineral rents, and forest rents.