Africa, however, is developing very quickly and has seen significant economic improvement and development in the past decade. Even so, however, many nations aren’t showing economic growth, and even the countries that are improving are not experiencing nearly as much growth as the nations would like. Economic insecurity, political instability, and civil wars within these nations have left many of Africa’s citizens living a life of poverty.
One of the factors used to determine the wealth of nations around the world is the gross domestic product (GDP) per capita. The GDP per capita measures the purchasing power of each nation in the international market. GDP is an excellent indicator of affluence, and as such, it is very commonly used for the sake of determining how rich, or in this case how poor, a country is.
Below are Africa top 20 poorest countries
20. ETHIOPIA
. GNPI Per Capita: $2,701
. 2019 GPD: $240.168
. Population: 109.2 Million
. Life Expectancy : 65.7 Year
Ethiopia is Africa’s oldest independent nation, and having never been colonized, it has not faced the challenges that come with new-found independence that many other countries on this list faced. However, droughts and civil conflict in the early ’90s have hurt development, and infrastructure in the country is lacking.
Less than half of the population has access to electricity, and there are only about 38 cell-phone subscriptions per 100 people. Broadband and landline telephone subscriptions are even more rare. More than one in every four Ehtiopians live on less than $1.90 a day, and 62% live on $3.20 or less a day.
19. RWANDA
.GNPI Per Capita $2,444
. 2019 GPD : $30.68 Billion
. Population 12. 3 Milion
. Life Expectancy: 67.5 Year
Though Rwanda has made a comeback in recent years through some development strides of by President Paul Kagama but the country still ranks among the poorest countries in the world, with a GNI per capita of just $1,814. Nearly 80% of Rwandans live on less than $3.20 a day, and over half live on less than $1.90.
The landlocked country in east-central Africa. economic development has been hampered by one of the worst genocides in history. In the mid-1990s, were an estimated of 800,000 Rwandans were killed in less than 100 days for their ethnicity.
18. GUINEA
. GNI Per Capital $2,390
. 2019 GPD $26.451 Billon
. Population: 12.7 Million
. Life Expectancy 60.6 years
Despite a wealth of valuable minerals like diamonds, gold, and aluminum ore, Guinea ranks as one of the poorest countries in the world. Only about a third of residents have access to electricity, and the country’s 32% literacy rate is among the lowest in the world. Like many poor countries, Guinea has a largely agrarian economy, with farming accounting for about two-thirds of total employment.
17. BURKINA FASO
. GNPI Per Capita: $2,207
. 2020 GPD: $45.339 Billions
. Population: 21.5 Milion
. Life Expectancy: 60.8
Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa, and despite significant gold reserves, it is one of the poorest countries in both the region and the world. Over the nearly 60 years since gaining independence from France, the country has endured regular political upheaval and violence – conditions under which meaningful development is all but impossible. Currently, over three-quarters of citizens live on less than $3.20 a day.
Several social and infrastructure obstacles stand in the way of economic development today. For example, only about a third of adults in Burkina Faso are literate, and fewer than 20% of residents have access to electricity.
16. GUINEA BISSAU
. GNPI Per Capita: $1,951
. 2018 GPD: $3.391
. Population: 1.6 million
. Life Expectancy: 57.8 Years
The West African nation of Guinea-Bissau is one of the most corrupt countries in the world. Weak public sector institutions have given way to drug trafficking and illegal logging. The legal part of the country’s economy is largely agricultural as over two-thirds of total employment is in farming. Cashews are the country’s main export, accounting for about 80% of total export value in 2017.
Today, only about 15% of the population has access to electricity, and 26% are malnourished. Guinea-Bissau is one of only a handful of countries worldwide where average life expectancy at birth is under 60 years
15. Sierra Leone
. GNPI Per Capita: $1,791
. 2019 GPD: $12.117 billion
. Population: 7.1 million
. Life Expectancy: 52.2 Years
Sierra Leone is a resource-rich country in West Africa. It endured a devastating civil war that was fueled by diamonds and valuable minerals trade. Though the war ended in 2002, it destroyed many of the country’s institutions, and the effects are still being felt. Today, Sierra Leone’s public sector is perceived to be more corrupt than most other countries.
The problems associated with the lack of economic development are evident. About a quarter of the country’s population is undernourished, and Sierra Leone’s maternal mortality rate of 1,360 deaths per 100,000 live births is the worst in the world. The country was also among the hardest hit by the 2014 Ebola outbreak, and at 52.2 years, average life expectancy at birth in Sierra Leone is the worst in the world.
14. GAMBIA
. GNPI Per Capita: $1,686
. 2019 GPD: $4.582 billion
. Population: 2.2 Million
. Life Expectancy: 61.1 Years
Despite being relatively stable socially and politically. Gambia still ranks among the poorest countries in the world with a GNI per capita of less than $1,700.
The Gambia has limited natural resources and relies heavily on agriculture, with wood, brazil nuts, and cashews accounting for 80% of its exports in 2017. Less than half of The Gambia’s population has access to electricity, and over a third of the country’s urban population lives in slums.
13. SOUTH SUDAN
. GNPI Per Capita: $1,503
. 2019 GPD: $18.435 billon
. Population: 12.7 million
. Life Expectancy: 57.3 years
About 82% of the population in South Sudan is poor according to the most recent estimates, based on the $1.90 2011 purchasing power parity (PPP) poverty line. The main challenge going forward is to ensure sustainability of peace and security in the country.
12. TOGO
. GNPI Per Capita: $1,612
. 2019 GDP: $14,919 Billion
. Population: 6.2 Million
. Life Expectancy: 60.5 Years
Weathering bouts of political instability since gaining independence from France in 1960, the West African nation of Togo has stabilized in recent years. The country’s economy growth of 4.4% in 2017 was faster than the 3.2% global average growth, and Togo’s government has invested heavily in infrastructure that will help attract investment and encourage development.
11. COMOROS
. GNPI Per Capita: $1,560
. 2019 GPD: $2.446 billion
. Population: 873,724
. Life Expectancy: 63.9 Years
The country has one of the biggest wealth gaps in the world and was ranked 159th out of 188 countries in the U.N.’s 2015 Human Development Index.
This political instability has discouraged foreign investment and hindered economic development. Although Comoros’s economy is based in agriculture, the country’s main exports (vanilla, cloves and perfume essence) experience frequent price fluctuations. On a basic level, Comoros is physically isolated, making the transportation of outgoing goods particularly expensive.
10. MADAGASCAR
. GNPI Per Capita: $1,554
. 2019 GPD: $45.948 bilion
. Population: 26.2 millions
. Life Expectancy 63.3 Years
Madagascar is an island nation located in the Indian Ocean east of the African continent. The former French colony has been independent since 1960, grappling with political violence and coups in the last several decades. While the county has a substantial tourism industry, it is heavily dependent on agriculture, with farming accounting for more than two-thirds of total employment.
Living conditions for many in the country demonstrate the hardships associated with poverty. Over 77% of the country’s urban population lives in slums, and about 43% of residents are undernourished. Life expectancy at birth in Madagascar is just 66.3 years, about six years shy of the global average.
9. ERITREA
. GNPI Per Capita: $1,434
. 2019 GPD: $11,263 billon
. Population: 6 million
. Life Expectancy: 65.5 Years
One of the youngest countries in the world, Eritrea won independence from neighboring Ethiopia in 1993. The country is highly militarized due in part to more than a decade-long war with Ethiopia that ended in 2018. In addition to war, the country’s severe drought has hampered economic development, as agriculture accounts for about 63% of employment. Eritrea drew up a democratic constitution in 1997 but never implemented it. Today, the single-party state ranks among the most corrupt in the world.
8. MOZAMBIQUE
. GNPI Per Capita: $1,266
. 2019 GPD: $41, 473 billions
. Population: 30.1 Million
. Life Expectancy: 59.3 Years
A staggering 62.4% of the population lives on $1.90 or less a day, and nearly 82% live on $3.20 a day. The country is also dealing with a public health crisis, as 12.5% of the population between the ages of 15 and 49 are HIV positive. Partially as a result, life expectancy in the country is less than 60 years.
7. MALAWI
. GNPI Per Capita: $1,172
. 2019 GPD: $25,037 billion
. Population: 19.5 Million
. Life Expectancy: 63.2 years
Malawi is one of the poorest countries in the world, a staggering 70.3% of Malawi population lives on less than $1.90 a day. Poorer countries are typically heavily dependent on agriculture and subsistence farming, and in Malawi, farming accounts for 71.9% of total employment.
Like other countries in the region, Malawi is struggling to contain the spread of HIV. Currently, about one in every 10 residents between the ages of 15 and 49 are HIV positive, and, according to the BBC, more than a million children living in the country have been orphaned by the disease.
6. NIGER
. GNPI Per Capita: $1,153
. 2019 GPD: $23.475 billion
. Population: 22.5 million
. Life Expectancy: 61.6 Years
Poverty is widespread in the country as more than three in every four residents live on less than $3.20 a day. Niger is a resource-rich nation, however, and oil exploration and gold mining are driving economic growth. Niger’s economy grew at a relatively rapid 4.9% pace in 2017.
5. LIBERIA
. GNPI Per Capita: $867
. 2019 GPD: $6.468 billion
. Population: 5.1 million
. Life Expectancy: 63.0 Years
Founded partly by freed U.S. slaves, Liberia’s economy was all but destroyed in the 1990s and early 2000s by a civil war that left a quarter of a million dead and thousands more displaced. Limited economic development in the country has lead to a low standard of living. Less than 20% of the population has access to electricity, and about 39% are undernourished. The government, which ranks among the most corrupt in the world, spends relatively little on education as a share of GDP, and illiteracy is widespread.
4. BURUNDI
. GNPI Per Capita: $808
. 2019 GPD: $8.380 billion
. Population: 10.5 Million
. Life Expectancy: 60. 9 Years
Burundi is also one of the least developed countries in the world. Over 87% of the population lives in rural areas, and fewer than 10% of people in the country have access to electricity. Though nearly all pregnant women in the country receive prenatal medical care, the country’s maternal mortality rate of 712 deaths per 100,000 live births is among the highest in the world.
3. DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO (DRC)
. GNPI Per Capita: $785
. 2019 GPD: $77.486 billion
. Population: 101.7 Millions
. Life Expectancy: 60 Years
Basic infrastructure is lacking in the country as only about 17% of the population has access to electricity, and there are no fixed telephone lines. This, in addition to rampant public sector corruption, makes conducting business in the country difficult. As in many poor countries, health outcomes are lagging in the DR Congo. The country has one of the world’s highest infant mortality rates, and the average life expectancy is just 60 years.
2. CENTRAL AFRICA REPUBLIC (CAR)
. GNPI Per Capita: $681
. 2019 GPD: $ 3.454 Billion
. Population: 5.5 Million
. Life Expectancy: 52.9 Years
Slightly more than half of the CAR population lives in rural areas, but of those who live in cities, more than 90% live in slums. CAR is the only country with available data where over half of all citizens – 61.8% – are undernourished. The country also has the third highest infant mortality rate in the world and one of the lowest average life expectancies, at just 52.9 years.
1. SOMALIA
. GNPI Per Capita: $888
. 2019 GPD: $13.324 Billions
. Population: 15.9 Millions
. Life Expectancy: 56.7 Years
Located in one of the most poverty-stricken regions in the world, Somalia is the poorest countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Poverty in Somalia has been an enormous issue for more than a century but has recently been slightly alleviated due to increased foreign aid and government stability.
The poorest countries in Africa are also the poorest countries in the world. The top five poorest countries in the world are the Central African Republic, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, and Somalia