Sierra Leone: Primary government expenditures as a proportion of original approved budget (%)

Key figures

Since 2007 it is up 44.57 percentage points from 77.58% in 2007. The World Bank has no value for 7 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

How it compares

In 2023, Sierra Leone had the 4th highest value of the 32 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 Sierra Leone in the 2023 ranking

• Libya — 1st of 32: 140.37%
• Turkmenistan — 2nd of 32: 122.19%
• Ukraine — 4th of 32: 118.33%
• South Sudan — 5th of 32: 115.97%
• Saudi Arabia — 6th of 32: 114.45%

What this measures

Primary government expenditures as a proportion of original approved budget measures the extent to which aggregate budget expenditure outturn reflects the amount originally approved, as defined in government budget documentation and fiscal reports. The coverage is budgetary central government (BCG) and the time period covered is the last three completed fiscal years.

Limitations: Although not all countries have used the PEFA methodology on an annual basis for the PEFA PI-1 indicator, the methodology relies on standard data sets for approved and final budget outturns which are commonly produced at least annually in every country. The countries that have not used the methodology to date are primarily highly developed countries which would have less difficulty in providing the necessary data than those in the lower and middle income categories that have been primary users of Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA) to date. (As of: 2024-07-29) One limitation of the indicator is that it is an aggregate indicator of budget reliability.

All 10 values

Primary government expenditures as a proportion of original approved budget (%) in nearby economies

• Angola — 73.48% (2023)
• Benin — 97.26% (2018)
• Botswana — 87.22% (2023)
• Burkina Faso — 95.82% (2016)
• Burundi — 112.38% (2023)
• Cabo Verde — 82.55% (2016)
• Cameroon — 42.64% (2024)
• Chad — 95.04% (2017)

More public sector data for Sierra Leone

• Military expenditure (current USD) — 32.18 million (2025)
• Military expenditure (current LCU) — 732.1 million (2025)
• Military expenditure (% of GDP) — 0.37% (2025)
• Armed forces personnel, total — 9,000 (2020)
• Armed forces personnel (% of total labor force) — 0.35% (2020)
• Military expenditure (% of general government expenditure) — 2.48% (2025)
• CPIA business regulatory environment rating (1=low to 6=high) — 2.5 (2025)
• CPIA debt policy rating (1=low to 6=high) — 3 (2025)
• CPIA economic management cluster average (1=low to 6=high) — 2.83 (2025)

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Questions people ask

What is Sierra Leone's primary government expenditures as a proportion of original approved budget (%)?

122.15% in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2007?

It is up 44.57 percentage points from 77.58% in 2007. The highest value was 130.74% in 2010 and the lowest 77.58% in 2007.

How does Sierra Leone rank?

4th highest of 32 economies with data for 2023.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA), World Bank (WB), uri: https://www.pefa.org/node/5239, note: The raw data collected in order to calculate this indicator are the initially Approved and Executed Budgets..

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator GF.XPD.BUDG.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA), World Bank (WB), uri: https://www.pefa.org/node/5239, note: The raw data collected in order to calculate this indicator are the initially Approved and Executed Budgets. 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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