Employee compensation as share of government spending in Malawi
Malawi: Employee compensation as share of government spending was 32.5% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Employee compensation as share of government spending in Malawi, 2009–2022
Source: International Monetary Fund (IMF) Government Finance Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of expense.
Analysis
The most recent figure for employee compensation as share of government spending in Malawi is 32.5%, measured in 2022.
That represents a change of up 0.7% on the previous year and up 20.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employee compensation as share of government spending in Malawi peaked at 33.1% in 2015 and was at its lowest, 18.8%, in 2009.
Malawi ranks 53rd of 155 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 14 years of available data.
Employee compensation as share of government spending in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % of expense | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 18.8% | — |
| 2010 | 23.1% | +22.8% |
| 2011 | 25.4% | +9.9% |
| 2012 | 27.0% | +6.3% |
| 2013 | 25.6% | -5.5% |
| 2014 | 26.6% | +4.2% |
| 2015 | 33.1% | +24.4% |
| 2016 | 32.3% | -2.5% |
| 2017 | 30.6% | -5.1% |
| 2018 | 30.7% | +0.1% |
| 2019 | 32.8% | +7.0% |
| 2020 | 32.6% | -0.9% |
| 2021 | 32.2% | -0.9% |
| 2022 | 32.5% | +0.7% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 32.5% is below the median for low income countries, which is 37.9%, 86% of the median. (16 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 32.5% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 36.9%, 88% of the median. (36 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 18.8% | 18.8% | 18.8% | 1 |
| 2010s | 28.7% | 23.1% | 33.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 32.4% | 32.2% | 32.6% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More work & labour data for Malawi
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual 0.4293 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth 0.4409 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth 0.4183 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate 1.02 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 4.02 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 13,360 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 28,345 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 30,321 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 28,820 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 59,141 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employee compensation as share of government spending in Malawi?
- Employee compensation as share of government spending in Malawi was 32.5% in 2022, according to International Monetary Fund (IMF) Government Finance Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest employee compensation as share of government spending recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 33.1% in 2015.
- What is the lowest employee compensation as share of government spending recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 18.8% in 2009.
- How does Malawi rank for employee compensation as share of government spending?
- Malawi ranks 53rd out of 155 countries with data for 2022.
- Is employee compensation as share of government spending rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 20.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from International Monetary Fund (IMF) Government Finance Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Employee compensation as share of government spending. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 14 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Employee compensation includes wages, in-kind payments, and government contributions to social insurance schemes such as social security and pensions.