Remittance inflows to GDP in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: Remittance inflows to GDP was 4.4% in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Remittance inflows to GDP in Sierra Leone, 1980–2020
Source: World Development Indicators (WDI), World Bank. Measured in %.
Analysis
Sierra Leone recorded 4.4% for remittance inflows to gdp in 2020. That is the highest value across all 41 years on record.
That represents a change of up 160.9% on the previous year and up 154.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, remittance inflows to gdp in Sierra Leone peaked at 4.4% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1991.
Sierra Leone ranks 67th of 197 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Remittance inflows to GDP in Sierra Leone, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 0.0% | — |
| 1981 | 0.0% | -8.8% |
| 1982 | 0.0% | -21.0% |
| 1983 | 0.0% | -14.5% |
| 1984 | 0.0% | +37.5% |
| 1985 | 0.0% | -37.5% |
| 1986 | 0.0% | +157.4% |
| 1987 | 0.0% | -7.7% |
| 1988 | 0.0% | -30.4% |
| 1989 | 0.0% | -26.7% |
| 1990 | 0.0% | -25.0% |
| 1991 | 0.0% | -14.6% |
| 1992 | 0.0% | +171.3% |
| 1993 | 0.0% | -22.2% |
| 1994 | 0.0% | -18.5% |
| 1995 | 2.7% | +44251.4% |
| 1996 | 2.7% | -1.4% |
| 1997 | 0.7% | -73.7% |
| 1998 | 3.0% | +329.6% |
| 1999 | 3.4% | +11.1% |
| 2000 | 1.1% | -66.6% |
| 2001 | 0.6% | -49.2% |
| 2002 | 1.7% | +205.4% |
| 2003 | 1.9% | +7.3% |
| 2004 | 1.7% | -8.7% |
| 2005 | 0.1% | -91.4% |
| 2006 | 0.8% | +461.7% |
| 2007 | 1.9% | +134.6% |
| 2008 | 0.9% | -53.7% |
| 2009 | 1.5% | +62.3% |
| 2010 | 1.7% | +17.3% |
| 2011 | 2.0% | +16.5% |
| 2012 | 1.7% | -15.1% |
| 2013 | 1.4% | -16.6% |
| 2014 | 1.2% | -12.1% |
| 2015 | 1.1% | -8.3% |
| 2016 | 1.6% | +38.8% |
| 2017 | 1.7% | +7.8% |
| 2018 | 1.8% | +4.9% |
| 2019 | 1.7% | -6.8% |
| 2020 | 4.4% | +160.9% |
Sierra Leone compared with similar countries
- Sierra Leone's 4.4% is above the median for low income countries, which is 2.9%, 1.5× the median. (24 countries reporting)
- Sierra Leone's 4.4% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 2.4%, 1.8× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Remittance inflows to GDP in Sierra Leone changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | +44251.4% | 0.0% | 2.7% |
| 2006 | +461.7% | 0.1% | 0.8% |
| 1998 | +329.6% | 0.7% | 3.0% |
| 2002 | +205.4% | 0.6% | 1.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.3% | 0.0% | 3.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.2% | 0.1% | 1.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.6% | 1.1% | 2.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.4% | 4.4% | 4.4% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Sierra Leone
More financial sector data for Sierra Leone
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, annual growth rate 5.01 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, per capita 0.0037 units per person (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, per capita 0.0027 units per person (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, annual growth rate 5.01 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, per capita 0.0037 units per person (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, SDR, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is remittance inflows to gdp in Sierra Leone?
- Remittance inflows to gdp in Sierra Leone was 4.4% in 2020, according to World Development Indicators (WDI), World Bank.
- What is the highest remittance inflows to gdp recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The highest recorded value was 4.4% in 2020.
- What is the lowest remittance inflows to gdp recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1991.
- How does Sierra Leone rank for remittance inflows to gdp?
- Sierra Leone ranks 67th out of 197 countries with data for 2020.
- Is remittance inflows to gdp rising or falling in Sierra Leone?
- Over the last ten years it is up 154.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Sierra Leone data come from?
- The figures come from World Development Indicators (WDI), World Bank, published as part of Remittance inflows to GDP (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 41 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Workers' remittances and compensation of employees comprise current transfers by migrant workers and wages and salaries earned by nonresident workers. Data are the sum of three items defined in the fifth edition of the IMF's Balance of Payments Manual: workers' remittances, compensation of employees, and migrants' transfers. Remittances are classified as current private transfers from migrant workers resident in the host country for more than a year, irrespective of their immigration status, to recipients in their country of origin. Migrants' transfers are defined as the net worth of migrants who are expected to remain in the host country for more than one year that is transferred from one country to another at the time of migration. Compensation of employees is the income of migrants who have lived in the host country for less than a year.