From North Africa to the western part of the continent, African countries face various security challenges, ranging from internal conflicts and terrorism to regional geopolitical dynamics.
Undeniably, economic progress is nearly impossible in a state of insecurity. In the face of this security void, the need to spend big on security/defence has never been more imperative for many African governments.
In a previous article, we explored the military strength of 10 African countries in 2024 based on Global Firepower’s assessment. The index ranks 145 nations’ militaries, weighing various factors like the volume of sophistication of its equipment, finances, geography, and resources.
However, the assessment of countries goes beyond military strength alone. Global Firepower also monitors the annual defence spending of each country.
This includes funds allocated by governments to cover various aspects of a standing fighting force namely procurement, maintenance/support, and pensions. Data presented on the list is through 2024.
In Africa, Algeria has the highest defence budget rankings for 2024, holding the 22nd position globally. Morocco and Egypt closely follow, securing the 29th and 35th positions on the global scale.
Below are the 10 African countries with the highest defence budget in 2024:
| 1 | Algeria | 22 | $ 21,600,000,000 |
| 2 | Morocco | 29 | $ 12,088,000,000 |
| 3 | Egypt | 35 | $ 9,400,000,000 |
| 4 | Nigeria | 56 | $ 4,000,000,000 |
| 5 | Libya | 59 | $ 3,400,000,000 |
| 6 | South Africa | 64 | $ 2,695,346,150 |
| 7 | Kenya | 70 | $ 2,200,000,000 |
| 8 | Tanzania | 73 | $ 1,870,000,000 |
| 9 | Botswana | 74 | $ 1,642,009,600 |
| 10 | Angola | 75 | $ 1,623,000,000 |
