Imports of goods and services (current US$) - Country Ranking - Africa

Definition: Imports of goods and services represent the value of all goods and other market services received from the rest of the world. They include the value of merchandise, freight, insurance, transport, travel, royalties, license fees, and other services, such as communication, construction, financial, information, business, personal, and government services. They exclude compensation of employees and investment income (formerly called factor services) and transfer payments. Data are in current U.S. dollars.

Source: World Bank national accounts data, and OECD National Accounts data files.

See also: Thematic map, Time series comparison

Find indicator:
Rank Country Value Year
1 South Africa 78,321,820,000.00 2020
2 Egypt 75,433,560,000.00 2020
3 Nigeria 71,632,200,000.00 2020
4 Morocco 48,821,600,000.00 2020
5 Algeria 40,371,740,000.00 2020
6 Tunisia 24,954,600,000.00 2018
7 Ghana 24,550,200,000.00 2020
8 Ethiopia 18,222,800,000.00 2020
9 Kenya 17,854,230,000.00 2020
10 Angola 16,998,680,000.00 2020
11 Libya 16,098,090,000.00 2020
12 Dem. Rep. Congo 14,559,920,000.00 2020
13 Côte d'Ivoire 12,554,240,000.00 2020
14 Mozambique 11,550,520,000.00 2019
15 Tanzania 9,554,154,000.00 2020
16 Senegal 8,747,022,000.00 2020
17 Uganda 8,116,376,000.00 2020
18 Cameroon 7,437,061,000.00 2020
19 Zimbabwe 7,003,801,000.00 2020
20 Botswana 6,937,553,000.00 2020
21 Mali 6,222,141,000.00 2020
22 Zambia 5,892,353,000.00 2020
23 Somalia 5,818,000,000.00 2020
24 Guinea 5,815,658,000.00 2020
25 Congo 5,687,888,000.00 2020
26 Mauritius 5,317,522,000.00 2020
27 Burkina Faso 5,023,005,000.00 2019
28 Djibouti 4,749,371,000.00 2020
29 Equatorial Guinea 4,655,176,000.00 2020
30 Namibia 4,569,569,000.00 2020
31 Chad 4,501,989,000.00 2020
32 Mauritania 4,058,550,000.00 2020
33 Benin 3,906,745,000.00 2020
34 Madagascar 3,767,773,000.00 2020
35 Rwanda 3,649,282,000.00 2020
36 Niger 3,557,475,000.00 2020
37 Gabon 3,484,498,000.00 2020
38 Togo 2,357,198,000.00 2020
39 Lesotho 1,976,043,000.00 2020
40 Eswatini 1,680,458,000.00 2020
41 Sierra Leone 1,481,754,000.00 2020
42 Seychelles 1,064,943,000.00 2020
43 Cabo Verde 1,019,523,000.00 2020
44 Central African Republic 851,796,500.00 2020
45 Burundi 793,343,700.00 2020
46 The Gambia 689,122,900.00 2020
47 Eritrea 603,784,800.00 2011
48 Guinea-Bissau 418,772,100.00 2020
49 Comoros 343,788,300.00 2020
50 Sudan 74,409,940.00 2020

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Limitations and Exceptions: Because policymakers have tended to focus on fostering the growth of output, and because data on production are easier to collect than data on spending, many countries generate their primary estimate of GDP using the production approach. Moreover, many countries do not estimate all the components of national expenditures but instead derive some of the main aggregates indirectly using GDP (based on the production approach) as the control total. Data on exports and imports are compiled from customs reports and balance of payments data. Although the data from the payments side provide reasonably reliable records of cross-border transactions, they may not adhere strictly to the appropriate definitions of valuation and timing used in the balance of payments or corresponds to the change-of ownership criterion. This issue has assumed greater significance with the increasing globalization of international business. Neither customs nor balance of payments data usually capture the illegal transactions that occur in many countries. Goods carried by travelers across borders in legal but unreported shuttle trade may further distort trade statistics.

Statistical Concept and Methodology: Gross domestic product (GDP) from the expenditure side is made up of household final consumption expenditure, general government final consumption expenditure, gross capital formation (private and public investment in fixed assets, changes in inventories, and net acquisitions of valuables), and net exports (exports minus imports) of goods and services. Such expenditures are recorded in purchaser prices and include net taxes on products.

Aggregation method: Gap-filled total

Periodicity: Annual