In the record
The idea
Africa is often described as one economy, poor and uniform. The numbers cannot be summed up in one phrase.
From $250 to $18,131
In 2023 gross domestic product per person, in current US dollars, was about $250 in Burundi and about $18,131 in Seychelles.[1] The highest is about 73 times the lowest, a ratio calculated here.[1]
The middle country of the 52 with a figure was at about $1,709.[1] Eight countries were above $5,000 and sixteen below $1,000, counted here.[1] Eritrea and South Sudan have no figure for 2023.[1]
What the number is
GDP per person divides a country's total output by its population. It does not say how income is shared, what things cost, or how much work happens outside the market.
It is a starting point for asking questions, not a verdict on any place.
- GDP per capita in current US dollars depends on exchange rates, so it can move without anyone's life changing. Other measures, such as purchasing-power comparisons, give a different spread and are not used here.
- The summary figures are our own arithmetic on one year's World Bank values; a different year would change them.
- Nothing here covers inequality inside countries, which can be as wide as the gap between them.
What readers add
No local voice on this story yet.Notes are added once the author has agreed to publication, and are read by people who know the subject afterwards.
Sources
- Institutional[1] GDP per capita, current US$ (NY.GDP.PCAP.CD), 2023. World Bank. data.worldbank.org retrieved 8 Oct 2026
2023 values for 52 of the 54 countries; Eritrea and South Sudan have none for that year. Output per person at market exchange rates, not a measure of how income is shared.
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