Introduction
The G-20 is a group of 19 countries and the European Union,
who represent developed and emerging economies. This
analysis will observe the military spending of the 19 countries
and compare this military spending against domestic priorities
in education and health care spending.
Note that each column chart is sorted based on its most recent 5 year period average,
and geographic charts are based on this 5 year period average.
For military spending, the most recent period is 2013-2017, while for education and
health care spending, it is 2011-2015.
The analysis will not include the European Union as it is the
only non-country in the G-20. Each analysis section will
include a column chart to observe the differences between countries,
a line chart to observe changes over time, and a geographic chart
to observe the range in spending. Data comes from the
World Bank and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD). External links to the
CIA World Fact Book are on the left-hand side for further information
on each of the 19 countries.
Table of Contents
Analysis on Total Spending
Total spending in military, education, and health care informs us to the global reality of who can and does focus on which sector. For military spending, this is what matters the most: the country with the highest total amount spent is likely to have the most capable military.
Military Spending in G-20 Countries
In total military spending, the United States dramatically stands out as the
highest spender. However, China, the second largest spender, is been growing its military spending
at a faster rate.
No other countries compare in total spending. This makes sense as the U.S. and China have the largest
economies and, along with India, have the largest population.
Education Spending in G-20 Countries
The United States and India appear to be increasing spending in education. However,
this increase is relatively modest. For all other countries, education spending appears
to not be varying greatly over time. Total spending on education is not very meaningful,
though, as spending is only as meaningful in how much is allocated per student.
Notably, data on public spending on education is scarce with Canada, China, and Saudi Arabia not
containing data between 2013 and 2017.
Health Care Spending in G-20 Countries
The United States and China have largely been increasing their
health care spending. Other countries have had stable spending.
Like education, spending on health care is only as meaningful as how much is allocated
per patient.
It is somewhat surprising that other countries, particularly Europe
and Japan have not been increasing their spending, given their aging populations.
Analysis on Spending Based on Population Size
In the previous section, we investigated how each country spends overall on its military, education, and health care system. This is meaningful for a country's military, in which spending only matters relative to other countries. However, this is less meaningful for education and health care, which are exclusively used domestically, and therefore matters on a per person basis. In this section, we investigate a country's spending based on their population size, which provides an indication of how much resources are allocate to its citizens at home. Per capita spending on education can be interpretted as an indication of how much resources a student may receive and per capita spending on health care can be interpretted as an indication of how much resources a patient may receive.
Military Spending per Capita in G-20 Countries
Saudi Arabia spends more on military than any country when accounting for its
small population size. The United States is second and this is notable
given that it contains the third largest population in the G-20.
Education Spending per Capita in G-20 Countries
Education spending per capita is much more evenly distributed between countries. While the United States spends the most, it is similar to other countries. India and Indonesia, having very large populations, are the only countries spending less than $500 per person.
Health Care Spending per Capita in G-20 Countries
Health care spending per capita is a little less evenly distributed than education. Notably, the United States, Germany, and Saudi Arabia have been increasing their spending per person over the past 10 years (2008-2017) more so than other countries. In general, Western countries (North America, Europe, and Australia) and Japan, which are all countries with aging populations, spend the most on health care.
Analysis on Spending Based on Economic Size
In this section, we investigated how each country prioritizes its spending. The size of one's economy indicates the resources a country has to improve their military, education, or health care system. The spending a country commits to one of these sectors as a percentage of its GDP (the best proxy for one's economy), will provide an indication of that country's priorities.
GDP per Capita in G-20 Countries
All countries appear to be mostly growing their per capita GDP over the past 10 years (2008-2017). The range in per capita GDP is fairly high, though, with the United States averaging $56 thousand per person and India averaging $6 thousand between 2013 and 2017.
Military Spending per GDP in G-20 Countries
United States spent the most on its military relative to its economic size
until 2013, after which Saudi Arabia became the largest spender on its military
relative to its economy.
While Saudi Arabia has increased its military expenditure, the decline in United
States expenditure relative to its economy is the most visible trend.
There is a large range between countries from 0.24% to 3.90%. Notably, only
the United States and Saudi Arabia spending above 2% of their GDP on military spending.
Education Spending per GDP in G-20 Countries
Education spending per GDP is very flat between countries. The United States is only the 9th largest spender in this category, but it is not dramatically different other countries. There is little change in spending over the past 10 years (2008-2017) among G-20 countries. The range averages only 3.37% to 6.07% between 2011 and 2015.
Health Care Spending per GDP in G-20 Countries
Again, similar to per capita spending, Western countries (North America, Europe, and Australia) and Japan, which are all countries with aging populations, spend the most on health care. The main difference between health care per capita spending and per GDP spending is that per GDP spending is largely not increasing over time, while it is for per capita spending. This can be explained by the countries that spend the most on health care due not have growing populations but do have growing economies.
Conclusion
Having observed military, education, and health care spending among all G-20 countries, we further compare United States' proportionate spending in these three sectors. Health care spending is almost half of the United States spending in these three sectors, while military spending is the lowest. While the United States stands apart most drastically from other G-20 countries in military spending, it is important to not that military spending is less than health care and education spending.