Top 10 African countries with the fewest west number of potential soldiers

Business Insider Africa presents the top 10 African countries with the fewest number of potential soldiers.
This list is courtesy of Global Firepower.
Nigeria ranks number 1 on the list.

While this is hardly a problem for most African countries, given Africa’s growing population, there is no doubt that some African countries simply don’t have the numbers to immediately enlist people into their military.

With fewer young people available for recruitment, the armed services of any given nation is at risk of struggling to satisfy operational objectives, including national defense, peacekeeping operations, and disaster response.

This deficit is especially problematic for African countries confronting security concerns such as terrorism, insurgency, and cross-border conflicts.

Countries in conflict-prone regions may struggle to maintain an efficient defense force, leaving them exposed to both internal and external attacks.

With fewer recruits joining the military, governments may be pushed to prolong current personnel's service periods or rely significantly on veteran soldiers.

While this can provide continuity, it also risks overburdening the present workers, resulting in fatigue, low morale, and decreased performance.

Furthermore, African countries have historically made major contributions to regional and international peacekeeping efforts.

However, a lack of youngsters reaching military age may limit a country's capacity to join in such efforts, undermining regional cooperation and security.

Mauritanian Army Google

With a limited pool of potential recruits, governments frequently have to invest more money in recruiting operations to entice young people to join the military.

These efforts may include giving greater salaries, better benefits, or educational incentives, all of which might put pressure on the public budget.

Additionally, maintaining existing soldiers becomes vital, necessitating increased spending on training, professional development, and welfare programs to keep the military workforce motivated and dedicated.

With that said, here are the 10 African countries with the lowest population reaching military age, according to data from Global Firepower.

Top 10 African countries with the fewest number of potential soldiers

Rank	Country	Population reaching military age annually by country 2025	Global rank
1.	Botswana	24,507	13th
2.	Namibia	30,840	15th
3.	Sierre Leone	45,605	19th
4.	Gabon	46,647	20th
5.	Liberia	65,247	33rd
6.	Eritrea	76,127	38th
7.	Mauritania	82,233	42nd
8.	Central Africa RepublicR	101,717	49th
9.	Republic of Congo	115,856	54th
10.	Libya	125,141	58th