* indicates monthly or quarterly data series

Armed forces personnel, percent of the labor force, 2020:

The average for 2020 based on 19 countries was 1.04 percent. The highest value was in Venezuela: 3.3 percent and the lowest value was in Haiti: 0.02 percent. The indicator is available from 1991 to 2020. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Measure: percent; Source: International Institute for Strategic Studies
Select indicator
* indicates monthly or quarterly data series


Countries Armed forces, percent of labor force, 2020 Global rank Available data
Venezuela 3.3 1 1991 - 2020
Colombia 1.7 2 1991 - 2020
El Salvador 1.6 3 1991 - 2020
Domin. Rep. 1.48 4 1991 - 2020
Panama 1.45 5 1991 - 2020
Uruguay 1.31 6 1991 - 2020
Chile 1.29 7 1991 - 2020
Bolivia 1.24 8 1991 - 2020
Peru 0.94 9 1991 - 2020
Paraguay 0.88 10 1991 - 2020
Brazil 0.75 11 1991 - 2020
Guatemala 0.67 12 1991 - 2020
Mexico 0.64 13 1991 - 2020
Honduras 0.55 14 1991 - 2020
Ecuador 0.54 15 1991 - 2020
Argentina 0.53 16 1991 - 2020
Costa Rica 0.41 17 1991 - 2020
Nicaragua 0.4 18 1991 - 2020
Haiti 0.02 19 1991 - 2020



Definition: Armed forces personnel are active duty military personnel, including paramilitary forces if the training, organization, equipment, and control suggest they may be used to support or replace regular military forces. Labor force comprises all people who meet the International Labour Organization's definition of the economically active population.

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