Rwanda: Taxes on international trade (% of revenue)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, Rwanda's taxes on international trade (% of revenue) fell 0.95 percentage points on 2023 (from 5.35% to 4.4%).

Across the 11 yearly changes before that (1991 to 2023), the average change was +0.34 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.72 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.8 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 1.74 percentage points in 1992 and the biggest yearly fall was 0.95 percentage points in 2024. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 7% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

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

How it compares

In 2024, Rwanda had the 26th highest value of the 68 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 Rwanda in the 2024 ranking

• Naoero — 22nd of 68: 5.29%
• El Salvador — 23rd of 68: 4.72%
• Guatemala — 24th of 68: 4.52%
• North Macedonia — 26th of 68: 4.29%
• Tajikistan — 27th of 68: 4.12%
• Costa Rica — 28th of 68: 3.96%

What this measures

Taxes on international trade are taxes that become payable when goods cross the national or customs frontiers of the economic territory or when transactions in services exchange between residents and non-residents. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of revenue which includes all transactions that add to the amount of economic value of a unit or sector.

Limitations: For most countries central government finance data have been consolidated into one account, but for others only budgetary central government accounts are available. Countries reporting budgetary data are noted in the country metadata. Because budgetary accounts may not include all central government units (such as social security funds), they usually provide an incomplete picture. In federal states the central government accounts provide an incomplete view of total public finance. Data on government revenue and expense are collected by the IMF through questionnaires to member countries and by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

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

All 14 values

Taxes on international trade (% of revenue) in nearby economies

• Angola — 2.57% (2024)
• Botswana — 32.61% (2023)
• Burkina Faso — 16.64% (2024)
• Burundi — 9.99% (2021)
• Cabo Verde — 15.03% (2020)
• Cameroon — 11.24% (2021)
• Congo, Dem. Rep. — 6.54% (2022)
• Congo, Rep. — 6.64% (2021)
• Côte d'Ivoire — 25.51% (2023)
• Equatorial Guinea — 1.13% (2022)

More public sector data for Rwanda

• Military expenditure (current USD) — 191.19 million (2025)
• Military expenditure (current LCU) — 273.65 billion (2025)
• Military expenditure (% of GDP) — 1.29% (2025)
• Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values) — 37 million (2023)
• Military expenditure (% of general government expenditure) — 4.7% (2025)
• Armed forces personnel, total — 35,000 (2020)
• Armed forces personnel (% of total labor force) — 0.7% (2020)
• Grants and other revenue (current LCU) — 1.5 trillion (2024)
• Grants and other revenue (% of revenue) — 33.97% (2024)
• Social contributions (current LCU)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
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Questions people ask

What is Rwanda's taxes on international trade (% of revenue)?

4.4% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1990?

It is down 16.09 percentage points from 20.49% in 1990. The highest value was 22.57% in 1992 and the lowest 3.71% in 2014.

How does Rwanda rank?

26th highest of 68 economies with data for 2024.

Is the latest change in taxes on international trade (% of revenue) unusual for Rwanda?

In 2024, Rwanda's taxes on international trade (% of revenue) fell 0.95 percentage points on 2023 (from 5.35% to 4.4%). Across the 11 yearly changes before that (1991 to 2023), the average change was +0.34 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.72 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.8 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator GC.TAX.INTT.RV.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF) 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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