10 African countries with the lowest income earners in 2024

In many African countries, a significant portion of economic activity occurs in the informal sector. This includes small-scale trading, subsistence farming, and other forms of unregistered economic activities. As a result income for the average person can be low due to an inability to maximize the market.

While not entirely representing the income levels of any given country, GNI per capita nonetheless, highlight the symptoms of economic problems, and is typically a great indicator of the income level of an economy.

African economies often face other challenges such as inadequate infrastructure, limited access to education and healthcare, and weak governance, all of which contribute to low levels of cash flow within an economy, and as a result, the GNI per capita is influenced.

Gross National Income (GNI) per capita is a widely used metric for assessing the economic performance of a country. It calculates the average income of a nation’s citizens and is often used to compare living standards across countries.

However, relying heavily on low-income earnings as a measure of GNI per capita may not be completely forthright for African countries. For example, in some African countries, a tiny elite may control a sizable share of the national revenue, while the bulk of the people remains poor.

Nonetheless, the GNI per capita is a key indicator in assessing the health of any economy on the planet.

According to a World Bank report titled World Development Report 2024, there are now 26 low-income, 108 middle-income, and 83 high-income economies in the globe as represented by their GNI per capita.

This report also highlights the GNI per capita in Dollars of the regions be it low, middle, or high income, and below are 10 African countries with the lowest GNI per capita.