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Economy of South Sudan vs Vatican compared: GDP & Debt

Updated on by Georank team

South Sudan has a GDP of $12B compared to $19.8M for the Vatican, ranking 149/197 and 197/197 by economy size, respectively.

South Sudan vs Vatican GDP by year

South Sudan
Vatican
1x
Year GDP, current $
South Sudan Vatican
2015 $11,997,800,760 -
2014 $13,962,212,847 -
2013 $18,426,469,017 -
2012 $11,931,472,169 -
2011 $14,907,308,933 -
2010 $14,602,072,411 -
2009 $12,231,264,525 -
2008 $14,586,253,383 -

Data sources: World Bank | Economy & Growth (2008–2015, retrieved 2026-04-06).

GeoRank.org/economy/south-sudan/vatican | CC BY

Economic indicators

South Sudan Vatican
Gross domestic product
$12B
2015
$19.8M
2025
GDP rank
149/197
2015
197/197
2025
GDP growth
-10.8%
2014-2015
n/a
GDP per capita
$1,080
2015
$19,800
2025
GDP per capita rank
175/197
2015
59/197
2025
GDP per capita, PPP
$1,155
2015
$39,191
2025
GDP per capita PPP rank
197/197
2015
59/197
2025
Government debt
$7.04B
2015
n/a
Debt-to-GDP ratio
50.7%
2024
n/a
Government debt per person
$633
2015
n/a
Government debt per person rank
158/185
2015
n/a
Average annual personal income after taxes
$1,305
2026
$18,169
2026
Income share by richest 10%
33%
2016
n/a
Income share by poorest 10%
1.8%
2016
n/a
Government expenditure, % of GDP
18.1%
2024
n/a
Consumer prices inflation
91.4%
2023-2024
n/a
Central bank interest rate
15%
2023
n/a
Unemployment rate
12.3%
2008
n/a
Population
12507858
936

Balance of trade

South Sudan Vatican
Current account balance
$578M
2023
n/a
Current account balance ranking
60/190
2023
n/a
Current account balance, % of GDP
-4.17%
2015
n/a
Goods imports
$2.25B
2023
n/a
Goods exports
$4.01B
2023
n/a
Service imports
$2.19B
2023
n/a
Service exports
$484M
2023
n/a
Imports of goods and services, % of GDP
28.9%
2015
n/a
Exports of goods and services, % of GDP
36.7%
2015
n/a

Economic freedom indices

The indices of economic freedom below are issued by the Heritage Foundation. Higher scores indicate stronger economic health.

South Sudan Vatican
Economic freedom 41 65
Economic freedom ranking 186/197 69/197

Other economic metrics

South Sudan Vatican
Services, % of GDP
56.6%
2015
n/a
Industry, % of GDP
33.1%
2015
n/a
Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, % of GDP
10.4%
2015
n/a
GNI, Atlas method
$11.7B
2015
n/a
GNI per capita, PPP
$1,010
2015
n/a
Total reserves including gold
$72.9M
2023
n/a
Total reserves ranking
175/177
2023
n/a
Net foreign direct investment
$2.21M
2019
n/a
Net inflows of foreign direct investment
$83.4M
2024
n/a
Net outflows of foreign direct investment
$0
2024
n/a
Poverty at national poverty lines
66%
2020
n/a
Gross capital formation, % of GDP
5.75%
2015
n/a

GDP per capita map

1x

Data sources: World Bank | Economy & Growth (1985–2024, retrieved 2026-04-06); U.S. Census Bureau (1985–2024, retrieved 2026-02-08).

GeoRank.org/economy/south-sudan/vatican | CC BY

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Data sources:

  1. World Bank | Economy & Growth (1985–2024, retrieved 2026-04-06)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau (1985–2024, retrieved 2026-02-08)
  3. International Monetary Fund (IMF) | Fiscal Monitor (2015–2024, retrieved 2026-02-20)
  4. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) (2019–2025, retrieved 2026-02-20)
  5. United Nations | World Population Prospects (2026, retrieved 2026-03-10)
  6. LivingCost (2026, retrieved 2025-10-14)

Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) — you’re free to copy, share, remix, adapt, and use even commercially as long as you give appropriate credit and clearly indicate if you made changes. Other sources may be subject to different license terms.

The current account balance is the sum of net trade in goods and services, net earnings from cross-border investments, and net transfer payments. It reflects a country's economic transactions with the rest of the world and is a fundamental component of the balance of payments. A surplus indicates that a country exports more than it imports, while a deficit shows the opposite.

Gross National Income (GNI) measures a country's total income. It encompasses income earned by residents, businesses, and foreign sources, defined as employee compensation and investment profits. GNI adds product taxes not included elsewhere and subtracts subsidies. It accounts for income from residents working abroad but excludes earnings from foreigners within the country.

A negative value for Net Foreign Direct Investment indicates a country is a net receiver of investments, as foreign inflows exceed outflows after Balance of Payments adjustments. A positive value indicates a net provider, with outflows exceeding inflows. Inflows are credits (increasing foreign claims on domestic assets), while outflows are debits (increasing domestic assets abroad).

Foreign direct investment (FDI, net inflows) shows how much capital foreign investors bring into a country after accounting for any funds that flow back in the opposite direction. It represents the net value of overseas companies establishing, expanding, or financing businesses in the reporting country. A positive number means more capital entered the country than was withdrawn, while a negative number means foreign investors pulled out more than they invested.

Foreign direct investment (FDI, net outflows) shows how much capital residents of a country invest abroad after accounting for any funds that flow back in the opposite direction. It represents the net value of domestic companies establishing, expanding, or financing businesses in other countries. A positive number means more capital was invested abroad than withdrawn, while a negative number means residents pulled back more than they invested.

Formerly gross domestic investment, gross capital formation measures the share of a country’s economic output invested in fixed assets, including buildings, machinery, and infrastructure. It indicates how much of the economy is devoted to building productive capacity.