Share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required in Tanzania, United Republic of

Tanzania, United Republic of: Share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required was 45.9% in 2019. ▼ Falling

Latest (2019)
45.9%
Change on year
up 5.3%
World rank
30th
of 134 countries
All-time high
87.7%
in 2003
All-time low
43.6%
in 2018
Years of data
17
2003–2019

Share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required in Tanzania, United Republic of, 2003–2019

0204060802003201120192003: 87.7 % of people at risk2004: 85.5 % of people at risk2005: 78.9 % of people at risk2006: 63.9 % of people at risk2007: 65.8 % of people at risk2008: 73.5 % of people at risk2009: 77.1 % of people at risk2010: 68.6 % of people at risk2011: 57.4 % of people at risk2012: 52.7 % of people at risk2013: 50.6 % of people at risk2014: 54.8 % of people at risk2015: 53 % of people at risk2016: 45.7 % of people at risk2017: 44 % of people at risk2018: 43.6 % of people at risk2019: 45.9 % of people at risk

Source: Harvard Medical School Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of people at risk.

Analysis

The most recent figure for share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required in Tanzania, United Republic of is 45.9%, measured in 2019.

That represents a change of up 5.3% on the previous year and down 40.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required in Tanzania, United Republic of peaked at 87.7% in 2003 and was at its lowest, 43.6%, in 2018.

Tanzania, United Republic of ranks 30th of 134 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 17 years of available data.

Share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required in Tanzania, United Republic of, year by year

Annual values for Share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required in Tanzania, United Republic of, 2003 to 2019.
Year % of people at risk Change
2003 87.7%
2004 85.5% -2.5%
2005 78.9% -7.7%
2006 63.9% -19.0%
2007 65.8% +3.0%
2008 73.5% +11.7%
2009 77.1% +4.9%
2010 68.6% -11.0%
2011 57.4% -16.3%
2012 52.7% -8.2%
2013 50.6% -4.0%
2014 54.8% +8.3%
2015 53.0% -3.3%
2016 45.7% -13.8%
2017 44.0% -3.7%
2018 43.6% -0.9%
2019 45.9% +5.3%

Tanzania, United Republic of compared with similar countries

  • Tanzania, United Republic of's 45.9% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 29.2%, 1.6× the median. (36 countries reporting)
  • Tanzania, United Republic of's 45.9% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 51.7%, 89% of the median. (36 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 76.1% 63.9% 87.7% 7
2010s 51.6% 43.6% 68.6% 10

Countries ranked near Tanzania, United Republic of

  1. 27 Comoros 47.8% compare
  2. 28 Benin 47.4% compare
  3. 29 Mali 46.6% compare
  4. 31 Honduras 45.8% compare
  5. 32 Guatemala 44.1% compare
  6. 33 Iran, Islamic Republic of 43.7% compare

See the full ranking of 134 places →

More population data for Tanzania, United Republic of

All data for Tanzania, United Republic of →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required in Tanzania, United Republic of?
Share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required in Tanzania, United Republic of was 45.9% in 2019, according to Harvard Medical School Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required recorded in Tanzania, United Republic of?
The highest recorded value was 87.7% in 2003.
What is the lowest share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required recorded in Tanzania, United Republic of?
The lowest recorded value was 43.6% in 2018.
How does Tanzania, United Republic of rank for share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required?
Tanzania, United Republic of ranks 30th out of 134 countries with data for 2019.
Is share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required rising or falling in Tanzania, United Republic of?
Over the last ten years it is down 40.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Tanzania, United Republic of data come from?
The figures come from Harvard Medical School Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 17 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required in Tanzania, United Republic of. Statizoid, drawing on Harvard Medical School Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 13 September 2026, from https://population.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-the-population-at-risk-of-catastrophic-expenditure-when-surgical-care-is-required/tanzania/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://population.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-the-population-at-risk-of-catastrophic-expenditure-when-surgical-care-is-required/tanzania/">Share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required in Tanzania, United Republic of</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Share of the population at risk of catastrophic spending when surgical care is required
Unit
% of people at risk
Source
Harvard Medical School Program in Global Surgery and Social Change (PGSSC), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
134 places, 2,380 data points, 2003–2022
Last refreshed

Catastrophic expenditure is defined as direct out-of-pocket payments for surgical and anaesthesia care exceeding 10% of total income.