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Mapped: Natural Resource Income as a Share of GDP
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Key Takeaways
- Libya derives over half of its GDP from natural resource rents, making the country highly exposed to commodity price swings.
- Resource dependence is far more common in developing and energy-exporting economies than in advanced industrial nations.
Natural resources remain a powerful driver of economic output for many countries. From oil and gas to minerals and forests, these assets can generate enormous income, but they also create vulnerability. This visualization maps natural resource income as a share of GDP, highlighting which economies are most dependent on extracting and selling raw materials.
The data for this visualization comes from the World Bank Group. It measures natural resource rents as a share of GDP in 2021, defined as the economic surplus generated from oil, gas, coal, minerals, and forests after accounting for extraction costs.
Extreme Resource Dependence in Energy Exporters
A small group of countries sits at the extreme end of resource dependence. Libya tops the list, with natural resource rents accounting for 61% of its GDP, reflecting its heavy reliance on oil exports. Iraq, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Republic of Congo also derive more than one-third of their economic output from natural resources.
In these economies, government revenues, employment, and foreign exchange earnings are closely tied to global commodity prices.
| Rank | Country | Natural Resources Income (% of GDP) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Libya | 61.03% |
| 2 | Iraq | 43.45% |
| 3 | Democratic Republic of the Congo | 38.83% |
| 4 | Republic of Congo | 37.71% |
| 5 | Zambia | 35.26% |
| 6 | Timor-Leste | 34.73% |
| 7 | Guyana | 33.68% |
| 8 | Mongolia | 33.14% |
| 9 | Iran, Islamic Rep. | 30.45% |
| 10 | Angola | 29.97% |
| 11 | Azerbaijan | 29.94% |
| 12 | Oman | 29.21% |
| 13 | Papua New Guinea | 27.39% |
| 14 | Qatar | 27.29% |
| 15 | Kazakhstan | 26.84% |
| 16 | Saudi Arabia | 25.57% |
| 17 | Brunei Darussalam | 24.28% |
| 18 | Equatorial Guinea | 23.50% |
| 19 | Algeria | 22.59% |
| 20 | Liberia | 21.92% |
| 21 | Chad | 21.34% |
| 22 | Uzbekistan | 20.47% |
| 23 | Burkina Faso | 20.14% |
| 24 | Russia | 18.51% |
| 25 | Gabon | 18.49% |
| 26 | Mali | 18.42% |
| 27 | Solomon Islands | 18.40% |
| 28 | Cabo Verde | 17.66% |
| 29 | United Arab Emirates | 17.63% |
| 30 | Chile | 16.90% |
| 31 | New Caledonia | 16.79% |
| 32 | Bahrain | 16.64% |
| 33 | Mozambique | 14.91% |
| 34 | Burundi | 13.96% |
| 35 | Australia | 13.36% |
| 36 | Ghana | 13.35% |
| 37 | Sudan | 12.75% |
| 38 | Peru | 12.72% |
| 39 | Kyrgyz Republic | 11.51% |
| 40 | Mauritania | 11.45% |
| 41 | Somalia | 11.24% |
| 42 | Guinea-Bissau | 10.43% |
| 43 | Central African Republic | 10.26% |
| 44 | Norway | 10.05% |
| 45 | Suriname | 9.59% |
| 46 | Bolivia | 9.47% |
| 47 | Tajikistan | 9.05% |
| 48 | Sierra Leone | 9.04% |
| 49 | Myanmar | 8.68% |
| 50 | Nigeria | 8.55% |
| 51 | Brazil | 7.94% |
| 52 | Togo | 7.86% |
| 53 | Trinidad and Tobago | 7.86% |
| 54 | Ukraine | 7.51% |
| 55 | Uganda | 7.48% |
| 56 | South Africa | 7.33% |
| 57 | Armenia | 7.05% |
| 58 | Malaysia | 6.92% |
| 59 | Ecuador | 6.70% |
| 60 | Tanzania | 6.69% |
| 61 | Niger | 6.41% |
| 62 | Zimbabwe | 6.40% |
| 63 | Ethiopia | 5.87% |
| 64 | Madagascar | 5.53% |
| 65 | Cameroon | 5.53% |
| 66 | Lao PDR | 5.38% |
| 67 | Colombia | 5.32% |
| 68 | Indonesia | 5.16% |
| 69 | Egypt | 5.14% |
| 70 | Canada | 4.95% |
| 71 | Cote d'Ivoire | 4.74% |
| 72 | Guinea | 4.52% |
| 73 | Senegal | 4.40% |
| 74 | Lesotho | 4.32% |
| 75 | Malawi | 4.22% |
| 76 | Namibia | 4.03% |
| 77 | Rwanda | 4.02% |
| 78 | Nicaragua | 3.84% |
| 79 | Panama | 3.66% |
| 80 | Mexico | 3.64% |
| 81 | India | 3.16% |
| 82 | Eswatini | 3.00% |
| 83 | Gambia, The | 2.86% |
| 84 | Bhutan | 2.73% |
| 85 | Argentina | 2.65% |
| 86 | Viet Nam | 2.55% |
| 87 | Benin | 2.30% |
| 88 | Fiji | 2.25% |
| 89 | Tunisia | 2.25% |
| 90 | Dominican Republic | 2.08% |
| 91 | Philippines | 1.97% |
| 92 | Guatemala | 1.93% |
| 93 | Uruguay | 1.93% |
| 94 | Sao Tome and Principe | 1.88% |
| 95 | Belarus | 1.86% |
| 96 | Thailand | 1.82% |
| 97 | Serbia | 1.75% |
| 98 | Estonia | 1.72% |
| 99 | China | 1.71% |
| 100 | Comoros | 1.63% |
| 101 | New Zealand | 1.49% |
| 102 | Albania | 1.44% |
| 103 | Pakistan | 1.44% |
| 104 | Georgia | 1.39% |
| 105 | Paraguay | 1.35% |
| 106 | United States | 1.28% |
| 107 | Kenya | 1.23% |
| 108 | Honduras | 1.22% |
| 109 | Sweden | 1.21% |
| 110 | Latvia | 1.17% |
| 111 | Romania | 1.14% |
| 112 | Botswana | 1.04% |
| 113 | Poland | 1.03% |
| 114 | Kosovo | 0.93% |
| 115 | Bulgaria | 0.92% |
| 116 | Cambodia | 0.84% |
| 117 | Turkiye | 0.83% |
| 118 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 0.81% |
| 119 | Costa Rica | 0.76% |
| 120 | Croatia | 0.68% |
| 121 | Montenegro | 0.64% |
| 122 | Bangladesh | 0.61% |
| 123 | United Kingdom | 0.59% |
| 124 | Vanuatu | 0.57% |
| 125 | El Salvador | 0.54% |
| 126 | Belize | 0.52% |
| 127 | Nepal | 0.50% |
| 128 | Jamaica | 0.46% |
| 129 | Finland | 0.45% |
| 130 | Israel | 0.44% |
| 131 | Afghanistan | 0.43% |
| 132 | Hungary | 0.40% |
| 133 | Czechia | 0.39% |
| 134 | Morocco | 0.39% |
| 135 | Netherlands | 0.34% |
| 136 | Denmark | 0.34% |
| 137 | Barbados | 0.33% |
| 138 | Haiti | 0.33% |
| 139 | Portugal | 0.29% |
| 140 | Lithuania | 0.29% |
| 141 | Samoa | 0.28% |
| 142 | Djibouti | 0.28% |
| 143 | Moldova | 0.24% |
| 144 | Slovak Republic | 0.23% |
| 145 | Slovenia | 0.19% |
| 146 | North Macedonia | 0.14% |
| 147 | Seychelles | 0.12% |
| 148 | Austria | 0.12% |
| 149 | Spain | 0.12% |
| 150 | Italy | 0.11% |
| 151 | Ireland | 0.10% |
| 152 | Greece | 0.09% |
| 153 | Sri Lanka | 0.08% |
| 154 | Jordan | 0.08% |
| 155 | Germany | 0.08% |
| 156 | Korea, Rep. | 0.05% |
| 157 | Japan | 0.05% |
| 158 | Belgium | 0.04% |
| 159 | Kiribati | 0.04% |
| 160 | Tonga | 0.04% |
| 161 | Dominica | 0.03% |
| 162 | France | 0.03% |
| 163 | St. Vincent and the Grenadines | 0.02% |
| 164 | Micronesia, Fed. Sts. | 0.02% |
| 165 | The Bahamas | 0.01% |
| 166 | St. Lucia | 0.01% |
| 167 | Cyprus | 0.01% |
| 168 | Switzerland | 0.01% |
| 169 | Luxembourg | 0.00% |
| 170 | Maldives | 0.00% |
| 171 | French Polynesia | 0.00% |
| 172 | Turks and Caicos Islands | 0.00% |
| 173 | Lebanon | 0.00% |
| 174 | Mauritius | 0.00% |
| 175 | Aruba | 0.00% |
| 176 | Hong Kong | 0.00% |
| 177 | Macao | 0.00% |
| 178 | Singapore | 0.00% |
| 179 | Iceland | 0.00% |
| 180 | Andorra | 0.00% |
| 181 | Antigua and Barbuda | 0.00% |
| 182 | American Samoa | 0.00% |
| 183 | Bermuda | 0.00% |
| 184 | Cuba | 0.00% |
| 185 | Curacao | 0.00% |
| 186 | Eritrea | 0.00% |
| 187 | Faroe Islands | 0.00% |
| 188 | Grenada | 0.00% |
| 189 | Gibraltar | 0.00% |
| 190 | Greenland | 0.00% |
| 191 | Guam | 0.00% |
| 192 | Isle of Man | 0.00% |
| 193 | Channel Islands | 0.00% |
| 194 | St. Kitts and Nevis | 0.00% |
| 195 | North Korea | 0.00% |
| 196 | Kuwait | 0.00% |
| 197 | Cayman Islands | 0.00% |
| 198 | Liechtenstein | 0.00% |
| 199 | Monaco | 0.00% |
| 200 | St. Martin (French part) | 0.00% |
| 201 | Marshall Islands | 0.00% |
| 202 | Northern Mariana Islands | 0.00% |
| 203 | Malta | 0.00% |
| 204 | Nauru | 0.00% |
| 205 | Puerto Rico (U.S.) | 0.00% |
| 206 | West Bank and Gaza | 0.00% |
| 207 | Palau | 0.00% |
| 208 | San Marino | 0.00% |
| 209 | South Sudan | 0.00% |
| 210 | Sint Maarten (Dutch part) | 0.00% |
| 211 | Syrian Arab Republic | 0.00% |
| 212 | Turkmenistan | 0.00% |
| 213 | Tuvalu | 0.00% |
| 214 | Venezuela, RB | 0.00% |
| 215 | British Virgin Islands | 0.00% |
| 216 | Virgin Islands (U.S.) | 0.00% |
| 217 | Yemen, Rep. | 0.00% |
Many of the most resource-dependent countries are concentrated in the Middle East and Africa. Oil- and gas-rich nations such as Iran, Angola, Oman, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia feature prominently.
In sub-Saharan Africa, mineral exporters like Zambia and Mongolia, along with oil producers such as Equatorial Guinea and Chad, rely heavily on resource rents.
Advanced Economies Show Low Resource Reliance
In contrast, most advanced economies generate only a small share of GDP from natural resources. Countries such as the United States, Germany, Japan, France, and the United Kingdom all register resource rents near or below 1% of GDP.
Even resource-rich developed nations like Norway and Australia show relatively moderate dependence, reflecting diversified economies with strong manufacturing and services sectors.
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