Military

Egypt and Algeria Lead Africa in Armored Vehicle Strength

Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

24/7 Wall St. Insights:

  • Egypt and Algeria have some of the strongest militaries on the African continent
  • Egypt is home to one of the largest armored forces in the world, surpassing a number of NATO countries in just tank numbers alone
  • Algeria rivals Egypt in terms of armored forces as a result of its strategic military partnership with Russia
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Egypt and Algeria stand as the leading military powers in Africa, particularly when it comes to armored vehicle strength. Both countries have invested heavily in tanks, artillery, and armored personnel carriers in general. Considering this and the investment in their air forces and navies, these two militaries are some of the most powerful on the continent.

Egypt is home to one of the largest armored forces in the world, surpassing a number of NATO countries in just tank numbers alone. However, this also extends to its military vehicles in general. (These are the 30 most mass-produced tanks since WWII ended.)

One of the main components of Egypt’s armored force is the M1 Abrams main battle tank. There are over 1,000 of these units under Egypt’s command. In addition to the Abrams, Egypt’s armored forces also include older models like the Soviet-era T-62 and T-55 tanks. Further complementing these, Egypt boasts a number of towed and self-propelled artillery, outside of basic military vehicles.

Algeria rivals Egypt in terms of armored forces as a result of its strategic military partnership with Russia. While Egypt may have favorable relations with the U.S., Algeria’s relations with Russia have proven fruitful too. (Which countries support Russia in the conflict with Ukraine.)

The Algerian army fields over 500 T-90SA tanks, which are some of the most advanced tanks in the world, according to Russian President Vladmir Putin. Algeria also has a number of T-72 tanks, complementing its fleet of armored personnel carriers. At the same time, Algeria has a number of artillery systems, such as the BM-21 Grad multiple rocket launcher.

Both of these countries are at the top of their game in terms of armored vehicles. Some other nations on the African continent have formidable forces, while others do not measure up.

24/7 Wall St. is taking a closer look at the arsenals of African nations. To identify the African countries with the most military vehicles, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed 2024 Military Strength Ranking from Global Firepower, an annually updated defense-related statistics website with information on 145 countries. Countries were ranked on the total number of vehicles in their arsenal. We included supplemental information regarding the total tanks, artillery and MLRS units, as well as each country’s overall military strength score.

Here is a look at the African countries with the most military vehicles:

Why Are We Covering This?

RollingEarth / E+ via Getty Images

Understanding the military dynamics of Africa is important due to the continent’s strategic geopolitical significance. The continent is known for some instability, and military power is one way of ensuring stability both political and economical. Many of these African nations are growing rapidly and the continued stability of this region is crucial.

38. Sierra Leone

  • Total military vehicles: 100
  • Total tanks: 0
  • Total artillery: 0
  • Total MLRS: 0
  • Military strength score and world rank: 3.5433 – #138 out of 145

37. Benin

Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Total military vehicles: 150
  • Total tanks: 0
  • Total artillery: 0
  • Total MLRS: 0
  • Military strength score and world rank: 3.8912 – #141 out of 145

36. Central African Republic

  • Total military vehicles: 228
  • Total tanks: 0
  • Total artillery: 0
  • Total MLRS: 0
  • Military strength score and world rank: 3.5316 – #137 out of 145

35. Madagascar

Tiben01 / Wikimedia Commons
  • Total military vehicles: 232
  • Total tanks: 12
  • Total artillery: 0
  • Total MLRS: 0
  • Military strength score and world rank: 3.0655 – #133 out of 145

34. Liberia

  • Total military vehicles: 325
  • Total tanks: 0
  • Total artillery: 0
  • Total MLRS: 0
  • Military strength score and world rank: 3.7262 – #140 out of 145

33. Democratic Republic of Congo

  • Total military vehicles: 458
  • Total tanks: 210
  • Total artillery: 135
  • Total MLRS: 50
  • Military strength score and world rank: 1.2491 – #73 out of 145

32. Ivory Coast

Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Total military vehicles: 476
  • Total tanks: 10
  • Total artillery: 4
  • Total MLRS: 6
  • Military strength score and world rank: 1.9869 – #98 out of 145

31. Zambia

Tsidoti / Wikimedia Commons
  • Total military vehicles: 506
  • Total tanks: 38
  • Total artillery: 46
  • Total MLRS: 35
  • Military strength score and world rank: 1.9851 – #97 out of 145

30. Republic of the Congo

Democratic+Republic+of+Congo+military | MEDFLAG 2010, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, September 2010
usarmyafrica / Flickr
  • Total military vehicles: 519
  • Total tanks: 32
  • Total artillery: 37
  • Total MLRS: 72
  • Military strength score and world rank: 2.7282 – #122 out of 145

29. Botswana

mtcurado / iStock via Getty Images
  • Total military vehicles: 587
  • Total tanks: 20
  • Total artillery: 48
  • Total MLRS: 20
  • Military strength score and world rank: 2.8353 – #126 out of 145

28. Mali

39955793@N07 / Flickr
  • Total military vehicles: 647
  • Total tanks: 20
  • Total artillery: 10
  • Total MLRS: 25
  • Military strength score and world rank: 2.1115 – #106 out of 145

27. Tanzania

Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Total military vehicles: 712
  • Total tanks: 21
  • Total artillery: 0
  • Total MLRS: 0
  • Military strength score and world rank: 2.0587 – #103 out of 145

26. Gabon

Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Total military vehicles: 848
  • Total tanks: 0
  • Total artillery: 4
  • Total MLRS: 28
  • Military strength score and world rank: 2.9517 – #132 out of 145

25. Cameroon

Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Total military vehicles: 850
  • Total tanks: 0
  • Total artillery: 70
  • Total MLRS: 20
  • Military strength score and world rank: 2.0599 – #104 out of 145

24. Mozambique

Mozambique+tanks | N/A
rosino / Flickr
  • Total military vehicles: 872
  • Total tanks: 60
  • Total artillery: 104
  • Total MLRS: 12
  • Military strength score and world rank: 1.8377 – #92 out of 145

23. Niger

  • Total military vehicles: 912
  • Total tanks: 0
  • Total artillery: 0
  • Total MLRS: 0
  • Military strength score and world rank: 2.5988 – #121 out of 145

22. Mauritania

  • Total military vehicles: 1,000
  • Total tanks: 0
  • Total artillery: 0
  • Total MLRS: 0
  • Military strength score and world rank: 2.9277 – #131 out of 145

21. Senegal

  • Total military vehicles: 1,104
  • Total tanks: 0
  • Total artillery: 20
  • Total MLRS: 6
  • Military strength score and world rank: 2.9117 – #130 out of 145

20. Burkina Faso

Burkina+Faso+military | 190216-A-XR613-421
39955793@N07 / Flickr
  • Total military vehicles: 1,112
  • Total tanks: 0
  • Total artillery: 12
  • Total MLRS: 5
  • Military strength score and world rank: 2.8501 – #127 out of 145

19. Chad

Chad tanks | War in the desert, Sahara
Franz Aberham / Photographer's Choice RF via Getty Images
  • Total military vehicles: 1,568
  • Total tanks: 90
  • Total artillery: 25
  • Total MLRS: 21
  • Military strength score and world rank: 1.8607 – #93 out of 145

18. Ghana

ell-r-brown / Flickr
  • Total military vehicles: 1,656
  • Total tanks: 0
  • Total artillery: 6
  • Total MLRS: 15
  • Military strength score and world rank: 2.2358 – #113 out of 145

17. Somalia

  • Total military vehicles: 1,856
  • Total tanks: 0
  • Total artillery: 0
  • Total MLRS: 0
  • Military strength score and world rank: 3.9006 – #142 out of 145

16. South Sudan

Steve Evans / Wikimedia Commons
  • Total military vehicles: 1,920
  • Total tanks: 55
  • Total artillery: 20
  • Total MLRS: 10
  • Military strength score and world rank: 2.4376 – #119 out of 145

15. Zimbabwe

NatanaelGinting / Getty Images
  • Total military vehicles: 2,412
  • Total tanks: 20
  • Total artillery: 0
  • Total MLRS: 0
  • Military strength score and world rank: 2.0352 – #101 out of 145

14. Namibia

Namibia military | Soldier with machine gun with national flag of Namibia
Allexxandar / iStock via Getty Images
  • Total military vehicles: 2,674
  • Total tanks: 7
  • Total artillery: 50
  • Total MLRS: 7
  • Military strength score and world rank: 2.7652 – #124 out of 145

13. Libya

Libya tanks | A T-55 tank destroyed by NATO forces in the desert north of Ajadabiya, Libya.
Stocktrek Images/Andrew Chittock / Stocktrek Images via Getty Images
  • Total military vehicles: 2,890
  • Total tanks: 300
  • Total artillery: 75
  • Total MLRS: 55
  • Military strength score and world rank: 1.4449 – #79 out of 145

12. Uganda

Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Total military vehicles: 3,162
  • Total tanks: 130
  • Total artillery: 32
  • Total MLRS: 12
  • Military strength score and world rank: 2.2405 – #114 out of 145

11. Eritrea

Музей отечественной военной истории / Wikimedia Commons
  • Total military vehicles: 3,512
  • Total tanks: 1,756
  • Total artillery: 210
  • Total MLRS: 219
  • Military strength score and world rank: 2.4152 – #117 out of 145

10. Sudan

David Degner / Getty Images News via Getty Images
  • Total military vehicles: 3,648
  • Total tanks: 233
  • Total artillery: 200
  • Total MLRS: 343
  • Military strength score and world rank: 1.4119 – #76 out of 145

9. Kenya

  • Total military vehicles: 4,856
  • Total tanks: 188
  • Total artillery: 71
  • Total MLRS: 0
  • Military strength score and world rank: 1.7629 – #89 out of 145

8. Angola

Angola military | Angolan military force, army or war concept. 3D rendering isolated on white background
AlexLMX / iStock via Getty Images
  • Total military vehicles: 5,500
  • Total tanks: 310
  • Total artillery: 580
  • Total MLRS: 123
  • Military strength score and world rank: 0.8702 – #55 out of 145

7. Tunisia

  • Total military vehicles: 6,400
  • Total tanks: 140
  • Total artillery: 108
  • Total MLRS: 0
  • Military strength score and world rank: 1.2881 – #74 out of 145

6. Nigeria

Nigeria+military+aircraft | SEPECAT "Jaguar" XX818 from 238 Squadron in hanger 3 at RAF Cosford
my_public_domain_photos / Flickr
  • Total military vehicles: 6,404
  • Total tanks: 343
  • Total artillery: 371
  • Total MLRS: 37
  • Military strength score and world rank: 0.5619 – #39 out of 145

5. Ethiopia

Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Total military vehicles: 10,028
  • Total tanks: 680
  • Total artillery: 713
  • Total MLRS: 79
  • Military strength score and world rank: 0.7938 – #49 out of 145

4. South Africa

South+Africa+tanks | USARAF Command Sergeant Major Visits South Africa
USARAF Command Sergeant Major Visits South Africa by US Army Africa / BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/)
  • Total military vehicles: 12,140
  • Total tanks: 195
  • Total artillery: 153
  • Total MLRS: 101
  • Military strength score and world rank: 0.4632 – #33 out of 145

3. Morocco

  • Total military vehicles: 13,710
  • Total tanks: 1,564
  • Total artillery: 871
  • Total MLRS: 208
  • Military strength score and world rank: 1.0081 – #61 out of 145

2. Algeria

  • Total military vehicles: 35,990
  • Total tanks: 1,632
  • Total artillery: 707
  • Total MLRS: 236
  • Military strength score and world rank: 0.3589 – #26 out of 145

1. Egypt

Ed Giles / Getty Images
  • Total military vehicles: 77,596
  • Total tanks: 5,340
  • Total artillery: 3,046
  • Total MLRS: 1,119
  • Military strength score and world rank: 0.2283 – #15 out of 145

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