- Business Insider Africa presents a list of 10 poorest countries in Africa.
- The main metrics used in compiling this list is the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita, as obtained from the World Bank.
- Do note that some of the world's poorest countries are located in Sub-Saharan Africa.
A few weeks ago, many people around the world were shocked when a BBC Africa Eye report uncovered how Chinese filmmaker, Lu Ke, had recorded a series of racist and derogatory videos featuring many innocent Malawian children. In the videos which are currently still circulating across Chinese social media channels, the children can be seen basically being used as props.
There is no gainsaying the fact that Lu Ke could have been able to pull this off by exploiting kids from some of the world's most impoverished households. The world's poorest of the poor are exposed different kinds of possible exploitation. Sadly, their situation continues to deteriorate on a daily.
Indeed, poverty is one of the world's most dreaded phenomena. This is why everyone tries as much as possible to avoid it. Unfortunately, the odds are just so much stacked against some people such that no matter how hard they try, they can't just escape it. Millions of such people are based here in Africa. And it's important to continue to spotlight their situation in order to spur necessary actions from those that are supposed to help alleviate their suffering.
Focus on the poorest countries in Africa
Africa is the poorest continent in the world. In other words, some of the world's poorest countries are located on the continent. These countries' misfortune is exacerbated by factors such as economic insecurity, political instability, civil wars, terrorism, corruption and natural disasters.
One of the ways development experts measure a country's poverty status (or lack thereof) is by gauging their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita. It measures the value of a country's total goods and services divided by the number of people living in the country. The lower the GDP per capita, the poorer the citizens of such country.
That said, below are 10 poorest countries in Africa based on low GDP per capita.
- Burundi: Has a GPD per capita of $239 according to the World Bank.
- Mozambique: Has a GPD per capita of $448.5 according to the World Bank.
- Madagascar: Has a GPD per capita of $471.5 according to the World Bank.
- Central African Republic: Has a GPD per capita of $492.8 according to the World Bank.
- Sierra Leone: Has a GPD per capita of $509.4 according to the World Bank.
- Democratic Republic of Congo: Has a GPD per capita of $544 according to the World Bank.
- Niger: Has a GPD per capita of $567.7 according to the World Bank.
- Liberia: Has a GPD per capita of $632.9 according to the World Bank.
- Malawi: Has a GPD per capita of $636 according to the World Bank.
- Chad: Has a GPD per capita of $659.3 according to the World Bank.
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