Zambia: Taxes on goods and services (% of industry and services value added)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, Zambia's taxes on goods and services (% of industry and services value added) rose 0.49 percentage points on 2023 (from 8.18% to 8.67%).

Across the 29 yearly changes before that (1991 to 2023), the average change was +0.01 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 2.01 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.2 standard deviations above 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 5.67 percentage points in 1996 and the biggest yearly fall was 4.94 percentage points in 1993. 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 1% 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, Zambia had the 65th highest value of the 86 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 2024 ranking

• Spain — 61st of 86: 8.98%
• Colombia — 62nd of 86: 8.85%
• Tanzania — 63rd of 86: 8.72%
• Paraguay — 65th of 86: 8.52%
• Costa Rica — 66th of 86: 8.27%
• Madagascar — 67th of 86: 8.25%

What this measures

General taxes on goods and services are taxes levied on the production, leasing, delivery, sale, purchase or other change of ownership of a wide range of goods and the provision of a wide range of services. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of value added in industry and services which is the contribution to the economy by industries in ISIC (Rev. 3) divisions 05-43 and 50-99.

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).

All 32 values

Taxes on goods and services (% of industry and services value added) in nearby economies

• Angola — 2.19% (2024)
• Botswana — 4.38% (2023)
• Burkina Faso — 13.51% (2024)
• Burundi — 13.39% (2021)
• Cabo Verde — 11.16% (2020)
• Cameroon — 8.14% (2021)
• Congo, Dem. Rep. — 3.75% (2022)
• Congo, Rep. — 3.31% (2021)
• Côte d'Ivoire

More public sector data for Zambia

• Military expenditure (current USD) — 405.86 million (2025)
• Military expenditure (current LCU) — 10.24 billion (2025)
• Military expenditure (% of GDP) — 1.26% (2025)
• Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values) — 1 million (2024)
• Grants and other revenue (current LCU) — 42.28 billion (2024)
• Grants and other revenue (% of revenue) — 25.32% (2024)
• Revenue, excluding grants (current LCU) — 154.97 billion (2024)
• Revenue, excluding grants (% of GDP) — 23.41% (2024)
• Taxes on international trade (current LCU) — 8.86 billion (2024)
• Taxes on international trade (% of revenue)

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 taxes on goods and services (% of industry and services value added)?

8.67% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1990?

It is down 2.37 percentage points from 11.04% in 1990. The highest value was 11.59% in 1999 and the lowest 5.59% in 1995.

How does Zambia rank?

65th highest of 86 economies with data for 2024.

Is the latest change in taxes on goods and services (% of industry and services value added) unusual for Zambia?

In 2024, Zambia's taxes on goods and services (% of industry and services value added) rose 0.49 percentage points on 2023 (from 8.18% to 8.67%). Across the 29 yearly changes before that (1991 to 2023), the average change was +0.01 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 2.01 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.2 standard deviations above 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 GC.TAX.GSRV.VA.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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