Namibia: Risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care (% of people at risk)

Key figures

Since 2003 it is down 10.8 percentage points from 22.3% in 2003. The World Bank has no value for 6 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

What the numbers say

In 2022, Namibia's risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care (% of people at risk) fell 0.9 percentage points on 2021 (from 12.4% to 11.5%).

Across the 10 yearly changes before that (2004 to 2021), the average change was −0.77 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 1.81 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.1 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 1.7 percentage points in 2010 and the biggest yearly fall was 5.1 percentage points in 2015. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2013 to 2022 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.6 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 63% of the movement over 8 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2022, Namibia had the 53rd highest value of the 109 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 Namibia in the 2022 ranking

• Bolivia — 50th of 109: 14.3%
• Tunisia — 51st of 109: 13.6%
• El Salvador — 52nd of 109: 13.3%
• South Africa — 54th of 109: 11.5%
• Algeria — 55th of 109: 10.8%
• Mongolia — 56th of 109: 10.4%

What this measures

The proportion of population at risk of catastrophic expenditure when surgical care is required. Catastrophic expenditure is defined as direct out of pocket payments for surgical and anaesthesia care exceeding 10% of total income.

Limitations: Prior to 2015, global data on surgery, anesthesia and obstetric care was virtually nonexistent. With the idea that “We can’t manage what we don’t measure”, the Lancet Commission on Global Surgery developed six Surgical, Obstetric and Anesthesia (SAO) indicators and collected data for them. The analysis of these data show large gaps in SAO care across countries by income groups.

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

All 14 values

Risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care (% of people at risk) in nearby economies

• Angola — 51.7% (2022)
• Benin — 47.4% (2019)
• Botswana — 20.9% (2022)
• Burkina Faso — 56.2% (2022)
• Burundi — 97.8% (2022)
• Cabo Verde — 21.6% (2022)
• Cameroon — 54.3% (2022)
• Comoros — 47.8% (2022)
• Congo, Dem. Rep.

More health data for Namibia

• Population ages 00-04, female (% of female population) — 12.58% (2025)
• Population ages 00-04, male (% of male population) — 13.23% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female — 568,676 (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female (% of female population) — 35.94% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male — 564,861 (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male (% of male population) — 37.4% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, total — 1.13 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) — 36.65% (2025)
• Population ages 05-09, female (% of female population) — 12.45% (2025)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Namibia's risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care (% of people at risk)?

11.5% in 2022, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2003?

It is down 10.8 percentage points from 22.3% in 2003. The highest value was 22.3% in 2003 and the lowest 11.5% in 2022.

How does Namibia rank?

53rd highest of 109 economies with data for 2022.

Is the latest change in risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care (% of people at risk) unusual for Namibia?

In 2022, Namibia's risk of catastrophic expenditure for surgical care (% of people at risk) fell 0.9 percentage points on 2021 (from 12.4% to 11.5%). Across the 10 yearly changes before that (2004 to 2021), the average change was −0.77 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 1.81 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.1 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SH.SGR.CRSK.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), Harvard Medical School, uri: https://www.pgssc.org/ 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.

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