Share of global plastic waste imports in Zambia

Zambia: Share of global plastic waste imports was 0.0% in 2023. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2023)
0.0%
Change on year
up 219.4%
World rank
84th
of 183 countries
All-time high
0.0%
in 2023
All-time low
0.0%
in 1996
Years of data
28
1995–2023

Share of global plastic waste imports in Zambia, 1995–2023

00.0030.0050.0070.011995200920231995: 0 %1996: 0 %1997: 0.001 %1998: 0 %1999: 0 %2000: 0 %2001: 0 %2002: 0 %2003: 0 %2004: 0 %2005: 0 %2006: 0 %2007: 0.001 %2008: 0.002 %2009: 0.001 %2010: 0 %2011: 0.001 %2012: 0 %2013: 0.001 %2014: 0 %2015: 0 %2016: 0 %2017: 0.001 %2018: 0 %2019: 0.001 %2020: 0 %2021: 0.003 %2023: 0.011 %

Source: United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

The most recent figure for share of global plastic waste imports in Zambia is 0.0%, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 28 years on record.

That represents a change of up 219.4% on the previous year and up 1,770.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of global plastic waste imports in Zambia peaked at 0.0% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1996.

Zambia ranks 84th of 183 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 5
2000s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 10
2010s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 10
2020s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 3

Countries ranked near Zambia

  1. 81 Togo 0.0% compare
  2. 82 Tanzania 0.0% compare
  3. 83 Sierra Leone 0.0% compare
  4. 85 Rwanda 0.0% compare
  5. 86 Democratic Republic of Congo 0.0% compare
  6. 87 Solomon Islands 0.0% compare

See the full ranking of 183 places →

More environment data for Zambia

All data for Zambia →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of global plastic waste imports in Zambia?
Share of global plastic waste imports in Zambia was 0.0% in 2023, according to United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of global plastic waste imports recorded in Zambia?
The highest recorded value was 0.0% in 2023.
What is the lowest share of global plastic waste imports recorded in Zambia?
The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1996.
How does Zambia rank for share of global plastic waste imports?
Zambia ranks 84th out of 183 countries with data for 2023.
Is share of global plastic waste imports rising or falling in Zambia?
Over the last ten years it is up 1,770.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Zambia data come from?
The figures come from United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of global plastic waste imports. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Share of global plastic waste imports
Unit
%
Source
United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
183 places, 4,496 data points, 1988–2024
Last refreshed

The percentage of global plastic waste imports that a country accounts for.