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Armed forces personnel since 1816 — all countries

Armed forces personnel since 1816 — Nigeria

Armed forces personnel since 1816 in Nigeria in 2022 — 143,000 people. Ranked 35 in the world out of 189. Since 1960, the indicator has risen by 2,760%.

2022 143,000 people +0% vs 2021
World rank 35of 189
Period maximum 320,000 people1971
Period minimum 5,000 people1960

Trend over time

1960–2022 · people

Armed forces personnel since 1816 — Nigeria, 1960–20220100,000200,000300,000400,00019601967197419811988199520022009201620221960: 5,000 people1962: 7,000 people1964: 25,000 people1966: 30,000 people1968: 85,000 people1970: 200,000 people1972: 305,000 people1974: 300,000 people1976: 270,000 people1978: 204,000 people1980: 150,000 people1982: 144,000 people1984: 144,000 people1986: 138,000 people1988: 107,000 people1990: 94,000 people1992: 76,000 people1994: 80,000 people1996: 80,000 people1998: 76,000 people2000: 76,000 people2002: 78,000 people2004: 78,000 people2006: 79,000 people2008: 80,000 people2010: 80,000 people2012: 80,000 people2014: 80,000 people2016: 80,000 people2018: 118,000 people2020: 143,000 people2022: 143,000 people
Change over the period: +138,000 (+2,760%) Average annual rate: 5.56 %

Comparison, 2022

How the value compares with the world and the groups this territory belongs to: Nigeria

Nigeria 143,000 people
World computed 20.79M people
Sub-Saharan Africa computed 1.97M people
Western Africa computed 332,000 people
Lower-middle-income countries computed 6.55M people
Armed forces personnel since 1816 — Nigeria, by year Nigeria All countries CSV XLSX
Year people Change Change, %
2022 143,000 +0 +0%
2021 143,000 +0 +0%
2020 143,000 +8,000 +5.93%
2019 135,000 +17,000 +14.41%
2018 118,000 +0 +0%
2017 118,000 +38,000 +47.5%
2016 80,000 +0 +0%
2015 80,000 +0 +0%
2014 80,000 +0 +0%
2013 80,000 +0 +0%
2012 80,000 +0 +0%
2011 80,000 +0 +0%
2010 80,000 +0 +0%
2009 80,000 +0 +0%
2008 80,000 −5,000 −5.88%
2007 85,000 +6,000 +7.59%
2006 79,000 +0 +0%
2005 79,000 +1,000 +1.28%
2004 78,000 +0 +0%
2003 78,000 +0 +0%
2002 78,000 +0 +0%
2001 78,000 +2,000 +2.63%
2000 76,000 −1,000 −1.3%
1999 77,000 +1,000 +1.32%
1998 76,000 +0 +0%
1997 76,000 −4,000 −5%
1996 80,000 +0 +0%
1995 80,000 +0 +0%
1994 80,000 +4,000 +5.26%
1993 76,000 +0 +0%
1992 76,000 −18,000 −19.15%
1991 94,000 +0 +0%
1990 94,000 −13,000 −12.15%
1989 107,000 +0 +0%
1988 107,000 −31,000 −22.46%
1987 138,000 +0 +0%
1986 138,000 +4,000 +2.99%
1985 134,000 −10,000 −6.94%
1984 144,000 +0 +0%
1983 144,000 +0 +0%
1982 144,000 +0 +0%
1981 144,000 −6,000 −4%
1980 150,000 −14,000 −8.54%
1979 164,000 −40,000 −19.61%
1978 204,000 −96,000 −32%
1977 300,000 +30,000 +11.11%
1976 270,000 +0 +0%
1975 270,000 −30,000 −10%
1974 300,000 −5,000 −1.64%
1973 305,000 +0 +0%
1972 305,000 −15,000 −4.69%
1971 320,000 +120,000 +60%
1970 200,000 +90,000 +81.82%
1969 110,000 +25,000 +29.41%
1968 85,000 +50,000 +142.86%
1967 35,000 +5,000 +16.67%
1966 30,000 +5,000 +20%
1965 25,000 +0 +0%
1964 25,000 +0 +0%
1963 25,000 +18,000 +257.14%
1962 7,000 +1,000 +16.67%
1961 6,000 +1,000 +20%
1960 5,000 — —

Western Africa, 2022

The same indicator for neighboring countries — with links to their pages

NG Nigeria 143,000 NE Niger 33,000 CI Côte d'Ivoire 27,000 ML Mali 21,000 GH Ghana 16,000 MR Mauritania 16,000 SN Senegal 14,000 TG Togo 13,000 BJ Benin 12,000 GN Guinea 10,000 SL Sierra Leone 9,000 BF Burkina Faso 7,000 GM Gambia 4,000 GW Guinea-Bissau 4,000 LR Liberia 2,000 CV Cabo Verde 1,000
Full table for all countries

About the indicator

The number of military personnel on active duty. The series was assembled by the Correlates of War project and continued with data of the International Institute for Strategic Studies; unlike the World Bank series, which begins in 1985, it reaches 1816 and makes military buildup over two centuries visible — including both world wars.

Important: Over two hundred years borders and the composition of countries changed, so the series before the middle of the 20th century refers to the territory of the time: comparing adjacent years is reliable, comparing 1830 with 2020 only loosely so.

Source: Military Expenditure Database (SIPRI), license SIPRI terms of use.

Other indicators for Nigeria

Defense Armed forces personnel

The number of active-duty military personnel and paramilitary forces.

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What share of a country’s population military personnel make up — a measure of how militarized a society is.

Nigeria by year Defense Military expenditure in dollars

The absolute volume of defense spending in current US dollars.

Nigeria by year Defense Military expenditure (% of GDP)

The share of GDP a country spends on defense.

Nigeria by year Defense Military expenditure share of the budget

What part of government spending goes to defense.

Nigeria by year Defense Arms exports

Transfers of major conventional weapons abroad, in SIPRI trend-indicator values (TIV).

Nigeria by year
All indicators for Nigeria