Maldives: Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values)

Key figures

Over five years it is up 266.67% from 3 million in 2020 (29.67% a year on average, compounded). Since 1992 it is up 450% from 2 million in 1992 (5.3% a year on average, compounded). The World Bank has no value for 23 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

How it compares

In 2025, Maldives had the 81st highest value of the 105 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Maldives in the 2025 ranking

• Mozambique — 79th of 105: 14 million
• Dominican Republic — 80th of 105: 13 million
• Luxembourg — 81st of 105: 11 million
• Sri Lanka — 83rd of 105: 11 million
• Mexico — 84th of 105: 9 million
• North Macedonia — 85th of 105: 9 million

What this measures

Arms transfers (imports) cover the volume of transfers of major arms through sales and gifts, and those made through manufacturing licenses. Data cover major conventional weapons such as aircraft, armored vehicles, artillery, radar systems, missiles, and ships. Figures are SIPRI Trend Indicator Values (TIVs). A '0' indicates that the volume of deliveries is between 0 and 0.5 million SIPRI TIV.

Limitations: SIPRI calculates the volume of transfers to, from and between all parties using the TIV and the number of weapon systems or subsystems delivered in a given year. This data is intended to provide a common unit to allow the measurement if trends in the flow of arms to particular countries and regions over time. Therefore, the main priority is to ensure that the TIV system remains consistent over time, and that any changes introduced are backdated. SIPRI TIV figures do not represent sales prices for arms transfers.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a sum.

All 11 values

Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values) in nearby economies

• Bangladesh — 32 million (2025)
• India — 2.86 billion (2025)
• Nepal — 6 million (2025)
• Sri Lanka — 11 million (2025)

More public sector data for Maldives

• Grants and other revenue (current LCU) — 5.92 billion (2021)
• Grants and other revenue (% of revenue) — 27.37% (2021)
• Revenue, excluding grants (current LCU) — 20.01 billion (2021)
• Revenue, excluding grants (% of GDP) — 24.78% (2021)
• Taxes on goods and services (current LCU) — 9.14 billion (2021)
• Taxes on goods and services (% of revenue) — 42.27% (2021)
• Customs and other import duties (current LCU) — 2.84 billion (2021)
• Customs and other import duties (% of tax revenue) — 18.06% (2021)
• Taxes on international trade (current LCU) — 3.83 billion (2021)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Maldives's arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values)?

11 million in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1992?

It is up 450% from 2 million in 1992 (5.3% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 15 million in 2006 and the lowest 0 in 1997.

How does Maldives rank?

81st highest of 105 economies with data for 2025.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Arms Transfers Programme, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), uri: https://armstransfers.sipri.org/ArmsTransfer/.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator MS.MIL.MPRT.KD, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Arms Transfers Programme, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), uri: https://armstransfers.sipri.org/ArmsTransfer/ Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

Want to ask your own questions of data like this? Try AnalyzeIt: upload a file or ask about public data in plain words, and every figure comes with its working.