Out-of-pocket expenditure in Gambia
Gambia: Out-of-pocket expenditure was 33.8% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Out-of-pocket expenditure in Gambia, 2000–2023
Source: Global Health Expenditure Database, updated December 12th, 2025, World Health Organization (WHO). Measured in % of current health expenditure.
Analysis
Gambia recorded 33.8% for out-of-pocket expenditure in 2023. That is the highest value across all 24 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 14.8% on the previous year and up 61.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-pocket expenditure in Gambia peaked at 33.8% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 9.8%, in 2004.
Gambia ranks 72nd of 193 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.
Out-of-pocket expenditure in Gambia, year by year
| Year | % of current health expenditure | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 13.7% | — |
| 2001 | 13.4% | -2.1% |
| 2002 | 13.1% | -1.8% |
| 2003 | 11.7% | -10.8% |
| 2004 | 9.8% | -16.0% |
| 2005 | 11.5% | +16.8% |
| 2006 | 13.0% | +13.4% |
| 2007 | 15.1% | +15.5% |
| 2008 | 16.4% | +9.1% |
| 2009 | 17.0% | +3.4% |
| 2010 | 18.0% | +6.0% |
| 2011 | 19.2% | +6.6% |
| 2012 | 19.4% | +1.1% |
| 2013 | 20.9% | +7.5% |
| 2014 | 26.8% | +28.4% |
| 2015 | 23.4% | -12.7% |
| 2016 | 30.5% | +30.3% |
| 2017 | 26.7% | -12.6% |
| 2018 | 20.2% | -24.3% |
| 2019 | 20.3% | +0.6% |
| 2020 | 24.9% | +22.5% |
| 2021 | 27.6% | +11.1% |
| 2022 | 29.4% | +6.6% |
| 2023 | 33.8% | +14.8% |
Gambia compared with similar countries
- Gambia's 33.8% is below the median for low income countries, which is 45.6%, 74% of the median. (24 countries reporting)
- Gambia's 33.8% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 32.4%, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 13.5% | 9.8% | 17.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 22.6% | 18.0% | 30.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 28.9% | 24.9% | 33.8% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Gambia
More health data for Gambia
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.27 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 1.15 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,044 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 700 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 0 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 0.9696 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0686 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 0.9636 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-pocket expenditure in Gambia?
- Out-of-pocket expenditure in Gambia was 33.8% in 2023, according to Global Health Expenditure Database, updated December 12th, 2025, World Health Organization (WHO).
- What is the highest out-of-pocket expenditure recorded in Gambia?
- The highest recorded value was 33.8% in 2023.
- What is the lowest out-of-pocket expenditure recorded in Gambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.8% in 2004.
- How does Gambia rank for out-of-pocket expenditure?
- Gambia ranks 72nd out of 193 countries with data for 2023.
- Is out-of-pocket expenditure rising or falling in Gambia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 61.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Gambia data come from?
- The figures come from Global Health Expenditure Database, updated December 12th, 2025, World Health Organization (WHO), published as part of Out-of-pocket expenditure (% of current health expenditure). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Share of out-of-pocket payments of total current health expenditures. Out-of-pocket payments are spending on health directly out-of-pocket by households.