In This Secretive Country, More Than 1 In 10 Adults Is In The Military

24/7 Wall St. Insights

• In the United States, the armed forces constitutes 0.8% of the total labor force.
• In some countries, the proportion is much, much higher.
• The most militarized countries are a mix of small, authoritarian regimes with strict conscription policies and larger countries engaged in conflict.
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In the United States – home to one of the largest, most powerful militaries in the world – armed forces personnel constitute just 0.8% of the total labor force. While the military is just a fraction of the population in most of the developed world, in some countries the proportion is much higher.

Many smaller countries maintain relatively large armies, due to in some cases to ongoing conflict, strict conscription policies, or the influence of authoritarian governments that prioritize defense over other economic sectors. In North Korea, for example, all men are required to serve up to 10 years in the combat forces and up to 13 years in specialized combat forces. The heavy militarization in North Korea has resulted in an army that constitutes 8.6% of the national labor force. In the most militarized country – a secretive country whose policy of indefinite national service has provoked significant international criticism for its impact on human rights and economic development – more than one in 10 adults is the military. A closer look at the data reveals the countries where the most residents are in the military.

To determine the countries where the most residents are in the military, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed data on armed forces counts from the World Bank. Countries were ranked based on the number of armed forces personnel as a percentage of the total labor force. Supplemental data on military expenditure and population are also from the World Bank. All data is for the most recent period available.

40. Namibia

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 1.6%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 16,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 2.7%
• Military expenditure, total: $338.2 million
• Total population: 3.0 million

39. Turkey

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 1.6%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 512,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 1.5%
• Military expenditure, total: $15.8 billion
• Total population: 85.3 million

38. Colombia

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 1.7%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 428,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 2.9%
• Military expenditure, total: $10.7 billion
• Total population: 52.3 million

37. Singapore

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 1.7%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 59,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 2.7%
• Military expenditure, total: $13.2 billion
• Total population: 5.9 million

36. Cyprus

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 1.8%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 13,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 1.8%
• Military expenditure, total: $566.9 million
• Total population: 1.3 million

35. Afghanistan

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 1.8%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 165,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 1.8%
• Military expenditure, total: $278.3 million
• Total population: 41.5 million

34. Saudi Arabia

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 1.9%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 282,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 7.1%
• Military expenditure, total: $75.8 billion
• Total population: 33.3 million

33. Myanmar

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 1.9%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 463,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 3.8%
• Military expenditure, total: $2.5 billion
• Total population: 54.1 million

32. Russia

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 2.0%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 1,454,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 5.9%
• Military expenditure, total: $109.5 billion
• Total population: 143.8 million

31. North Macedonia

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 2.0%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 16,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 1.7%
• Military expenditure, total: $266.6 million
• Total population: 1.8 million

30. Mauritania

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 2.0%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 21,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 2.5%
• Military expenditure, total: $277.2 million
• Total population: 5.0 million

29. South Korea

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 2.0%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 569,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 2.8%
• Military expenditure, total: $47.9 billion
• Total population: 51.7 million

28. Cambodia

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 2.0%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 191,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 2.1%
• Military expenditure, total: $668.0 million
• Total population: 17.4 million

27. Morocco

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 2.1%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 246,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 3.6%
• Military expenditure, total: $5.2 billion
• Total population: 37.7 million

26. Oman

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 2.1%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 47,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 5.4%
• Military expenditure, total: $5.9 billion
• Total population: 5.0 million

25. Bahrain

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 2.3%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 19,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 3.1%
• Military expenditure, total: $1.4 billion
• Total population: 1.6 million

24. Bhutan

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 2.3%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 6,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: N/A
• Military expenditure, total: N/A
• Total population: 786,385

23. Iran

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 2.4%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 650,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 2.1%
• Military expenditure, total: $10.3 billion
• Total population: 90.6 million

22. Lithuania

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 2.5%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 37,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 2.7%
• Military expenditure, total: $2.2 billion
• Total population: 2.9 million

21. Turkmenistan

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 2.6%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 57,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 2.9%
• Military expenditure, total: $111.9 million
• Total population: 7.4 million

20. Algeria

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 2.7%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 326,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 8.2%
• Military expenditure, total: $18.3 billion
• Total population: 46.2 million

19. Egypt

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 2.8%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 836,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 0.9%
• Military expenditure, total: $3.2 billion
• Total population: 114.5 million

18. Belarus

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 3.2%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 158,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 1.8%
• Military expenditure, total: $1.4 billion
• Total population: 9.2 million

17. Armenia

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 3.2%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 47,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 5.5%
• Military expenditure, total: $1.3 billion
• Total population: 3.0 million

16. Greece

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 3.2%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 147,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 3.2%
• Military expenditure, total: $7.7 billion
• Total population: 10.4 million

15. Venezuela

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 3.2%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 343,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 0.5%
• Military expenditure, total: $3.9 million
• Total population: 28.3 million

14. Brunei Darussalam

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 3.6%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 8,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 3.0%
• Military expenditure, total: $448.9 million
• Total population: 458,949

13. Sri Lanka

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 3.7%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 317,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 1.6%
• Military expenditure, total: $1.2 billion
• Total population: 22.0 million

12. Jordan

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 4.0%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 116,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 4.9%
• Military expenditure, total: $2.5 billion
• Total population: 11.4 million

11. Laos

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 4.1%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 129,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 0.2%
• Military expenditure, total: $22.7 million
• Total population: 7.7 million

10. Israel

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 4.2%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 178,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 5.3%
• Military expenditure, total: $27.5 billion
• Total population: 9.8 million

9. Lebanon

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 4.3%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 80,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 8.9%
• Military expenditure, total: $241.3 million
• Total population: 5.8 million

8. Iraq

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 4.5%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 459,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 2.1%
• Military expenditure, total: $5.1 billion
• Total population: 45.1 million

7. Montenegro

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 4.7%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 12,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 1.6%
• Military expenditure, total: $114.5 million
• Total population: 616,177

6. Sao Tome and Principe

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 5.1%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 1,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: N/A
• Military expenditure, total: N/A
• Total population: 230,871

5. Syria

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 5.2%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 269,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 4.1%
• Military expenditure, total: $2.5 billion
• Total population: 23.6 million

4. Maldives

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 5.4%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 5,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: N/A
• Military expenditure, total: N/A
• Total population: 525,994

3. Djibouti

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 5.5%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 13,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 2.6%
• Military expenditure, total: $36.3 million
• Total population: 1.2 million

2. North Korea

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 8.6%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 1,469,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: N/A
• Military expenditure, total: $1.6 billion
• Total population: 26.4 million

1. Eritrea

• Armed forces as percentage of total labor force: 13.4%
• Armed forces personnel, total: 202,000
• Military expenditure as percentage of GDP: 20.9%
• Military expenditure, total: $181.6 million
• Total population: 3.5 million

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