Zambia: Computer, communications and other services (% of commercial service exports)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2025, Zambia's computer, communications and other services (% of commercial service exports) fell 14.1 percentage points on 2024 (from 28.8% to 14.7%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1989 to 2024), the average change was +0.89 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 5.34 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.8 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 22.5 percentage points in 2024 and the biggest yearly fall was 14.1 percentage points in 2025. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2016 to 2025 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 22% 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 2025, Zambia had the 103rd highest value of the 134 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 Zambia in the 2025 ranking

• Montenegro — 99th of 134: 17.86%
• Saudi Arabia — 100th of 134: 16.06%
• Uzbekistan — 101st of 134: 15.95%
• Peru — 103rd of 134: 14.28%
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 104th of 134: 14%
• Uganda — 105th of 134: 13.97%

What this measures

Computer, communications and other services include such activities as international telecommunications, and postal and courier services; computer data; news-related service transactions between residents and nonresidents; construction services; royalties and license fees; miscellaneous business, professional, and technical services; and personal, cultural, and recreational services. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of service exports which are commercial services provided by residents to non-residents.

Limitations: Balance of payments statistics, the main source of information on international trade in services, have many weaknesses. Disaggregation of important components may be limited and varies considerably across countries. There are inconsistencies in the methods used to report items. And the recording of major flows as net items is common (for example, insurance transactions are often recorded as premiums less claims). These factors contribute to a downward bias in the value of the service trade reported in the balance of payments. Efforts are being made to improve the coverage, quality, and consistency of these data.

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

All 43 values

Computer, communications and other services (% of commercial service exports) in nearby economies

• Angola — 63.3% (2025)
• Benin — 4.36% (2023)
• Botswana — 36.08% (2025)
• Burkina Faso — 40.79% (2024)
• Burundi — 72.28% (2025)
• Cabo Verde — 8.28% (2025)
• Cameroon — 47.31% (2024)
• Comoros — 14.88% (2023)

More private sector & trade data for Zambia

• Merchandise trade (% of GDP) — 91.71% (2025)
• Merchandise imports (current US$) — US$13.17 billion (2025)
• Merchandise exports (current US$) — US$13.31 billion (2025)
• Merchandise imports from economies in the Arab World (% of total merchandise imports) — 16.21% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from high-income economies (% of total merchandise imports) — 37.56% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside region (% of total merchandise imports) — 24.96% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies in East Asia & Pacific (% of total merchandise imports) — 18.06% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies in Middle East & North Africa (% of total merchandise imports)

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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• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Zambia's computer, communications and other services (% of commercial service exports)?

14.7% in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1978?

It is up 7.79 percentage points from 6.91% in 1978. The highest value was 28.8% in 2024 and the lowest 0.05% in 2000.

How does Zambia rank?

103rd highest of 134 economies with data for 2025.

Is the latest change in computer, communications and other services (% of commercial service exports) unusual for Zambia?

In 2025, Zambia's computer, communications and other services (% of commercial service exports) fell 14.1 percentage points on 2024 (from 28.8% to 14.7%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1989 to 2024), the average change was +0.89 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 5.34 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.8 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator TX.VAL.OTHR.ZS.WT, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Balance of Payments 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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