Egypt is known as having one of the most powerful military forces on the African continent. It is home to an impressive air force and standing army, but it outranks even global superpowers in terms of its tank army.
While the United States may have the strongest military on the planet, it doesn't quite measure up in comparison to only a handful of other nations when it comes to certain aspects of its military arsenal. In terms of its tank arsenal, Egypt has the United States beat numerically speaking. Outside of this, Egypt owns more tanks than any NATO nation. (These are the NATO countries with the biggest tank armies.)
The one of the main components of Egypt's tank fleet is the American-made M1 Abrams. This tank makes up at least 1,000 units within Egypt's fleet. Considering the M1 Abrams is one of the most advanced modern battle tanks in existence, Egypt is home to one of the most formidable, armored forces within the region.
Apart from the M1 Abrams, Egypt also uses the older Soviet-era T-62 and T-55 tanks as part of its fleet. Although, many of these older tanks have been upgraded or improved with more advanced systems. (These are the 30 most mass-produced tanks since World War 2.)
Egypt is easily one of the largest and most well-equipped militaries in the Middle East and Africa, especially regarding its armored forces. 24/7 Wall St. is taking a closer look at Egypt and the rest of Africa in terms of their tank forces.
To identify the African countries with the most tanks, 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 tanks in their arsenal. We included supplemental information regarding the total military vehicles, artillery and MLRS units, as well as each country's overall military strength score. Nations that do not have any tanks in their arsenal were excluded.
Here is a look at the African countries with the biggest tank armies:
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.
26. Namibia
Total tanks: 7
Total artillery: 50
Total MLRS: 7
Total military vehicles: 2,674
World military strength score and rank: 2.7652 - #124 out of 145
25. Ivory Coast
Total tanks: 10
Total artillery: 4
Total MLRS: 6
Total military vehicles: 476
World military strength score and rank: 1.9869 - #98 out of 145
24. Madagascar
Total tanks: 12
Total artillery: 0
Total MLRS: 0
Total military vehicles: 232
World military strength score and rank: 3.0655 - #133 out of 145
23. Botswana
Total tanks: 20
Total artillery: 48
Total MLRS: 20
Total military vehicles: 587
World military strength score and rank: 2.8353 - #126 out of 145
22. Mali
Total tanks: 20
Total artillery: 10
Total MLRS: 25
Total military vehicles: 647
World military strength score and rank: 2.1115 - #106 out of 145
21. Zimbabwe
Total tanks: 20
Total artillery: 0
Total MLRS: 0
Total military vehicles: 2,412
World military strength score and rank: 2.0352 - #101 out of 145
20. Tanzania
Total tanks: 21
Total artillery: 0
Total MLRS: 0
Total military vehicles: 712
World military strength score and rank: 2.0587 - #103 out of 145
19. Republic of the Congo
Total tanks: 32
Total artillery: 37
Total MLRS: 72
Total military vehicles: 519
World military strength score and rank: 2.7282 - #122 out of 145
18. Zambia
Total tanks: 38
Total artillery: 46
Total MLRS: 35
Total military vehicles: 506
World military strength score and rank: 1.9851 - #97 out of 145
17. South Sudan
Total tanks: 55
Total artillery: 20
Total MLRS: 10
Total military vehicles: 1,920
World military strength score and rank: 2.4376 - #119 out of 145
16. Mozambique
Total tanks: 60
Total artillery: 104
Total MLRS: 12
Total military vehicles: 872
World military strength score and rank: 1.8377 - #92 out of 145
15. Chad
Total tanks: 90
Total artillery: 25
Total MLRS: 21
Total military vehicles: 1,568
World military strength score and rank: 1.8607 - #93 out of 145
14. Uganda
Total tanks: 130
Total artillery: 32
Total MLRS: 12
Total military vehicles: 3,162
World military strength score and rank: 2.2405 - #114 out of 145
13. Tunisia
Total tanks: 140
Total artillery: 108
Total MLRS: 0
Total military vehicles: 6,400
World military strength score and rank: 1.2881 - #74 out of 145
12. Kenya
Total tanks: 188
Total artillery: 71
Total MLRS: 0
Total military vehicles: 4,856
World military strength score and rank: 1.7629 - #89 out of 145
11. South Africa
Total tanks: 195
Total artillery: 153
Total MLRS: 101
Total military vehicles: 12,140
World military strength score and rank: 0.4632 - #33 out of 145
10. Democratic Republic of Congo
Total tanks: 210
Total artillery: 135
Total MLRS: 50
Total military vehicles: 458
World military strength score and rank: 1.2491 - #73 out of 145
9. Sudan
Total tanks: 233
Total artillery: 200
Total MLRS: 343
Total military vehicles: 3,648
World military strength score and rank: 1.4119 - #76 out of 145
8. Libya
Total tanks: 300
Total artillery: 75
Total MLRS: 55
Total military vehicles: 2,890
World military strength score and rank: 1.4449 - #79 out of 145
7. Angola
Total tanks: 310
Total artillery: 580
Total MLRS: 123
Total military vehicles: 5,500
World military strength score and rank: 0.8702 - #55 out of 145
6. Nigeria
Total tanks: 343
Total artillery: 371
Total MLRS: 37
Total military vehicles: 6,404
World military strength score and rank: 0.5619 - #39 out of 145
5. Ethiopia
Total tanks: 680
Total artillery: 713
Total MLRS: 79
Total military vehicles: 10,028
World military strength score and rank: 0.7938 - #49 out of 145
4. Morocco
Total tanks: 1,564
Total artillery: 871
Total MLRS: 208
Total military vehicles: 13,710
World military strength score and rank: 1.0081 - #61 out of 145
3. Algeria
Total tanks: 1,632
Total artillery: 707
Total MLRS: 236
Total military vehicles: 35,990
World military strength score and rank: 0.3589 - #26 out of 145
2. Eritrea
Total tanks: 1,756
Total artillery: 210
Total MLRS: 219
Total military vehicles: 3,512
World military strength score and rank: 2.4152 - #117 out of 145
1. Egypt
Total tanks: 5,340
Total artillery: 3,046
Total MLRS: 1,119
Total military vehicles: 77,596
World military strength score and rank: 0.2283 - #15 out of 145
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