Egypt, South Africa Included as Nigeria Misses Out of List of 2024 Richest African Countries

Egypt, South Africa Included as Nigeria Misses Out of List of 2024 Richest African Countries

  • Despite certain countries in the region generating a significant amount of wealth, Africa is considered low-middle-income
  • African wealthy nations that encourage regional trade include South Africa, Egypt and Nigeria
  • However, the report showed Nigeria is missing from the list of richest African countries for the year 2024

Legit.ng journalist Zainab Iwayemi has over 3 years of experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market.

The African continent is generally considered low-middle income despite certain countries in the region generating a significant amount of wealth.

These nations are significant to the world economy because of their natural resources and human capital.

2024 richest african countries list
The definition of wealth as the average production per person captures the essence of what it means to be affluent. Photo Credit: Peeterv
Source: Getty Images

Billionaire.africa reported that rich countries like Egypt, South Africa and even Nigeria are essential trading hubs that promote regional trade.

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Foreign direct investment (FDI), drawn by these robust economies, can cascade into neighbouring countries, creating a positive economic knock-on effect.

How best to calculate a country's wealth

Although there are many other aspects to a country's wealth, the definition of average production per person captures the essence of what it means to be affluent.

Global Finance states that while purchasing power parity, or PPP, is a more accurate measure of a person's purchasing power in any particular country.

The GDP per capita is typically the benchmark metric for accounting for variations in living expenses and inflation rates.

The GDP-PPP per capita in US dollars of 190 countries is listed in Global Finance's most recent economic statistics, which shows the ten richest African nations in 2024.

In the ten wealthiest countries in the world, per capita monthly purchasing power averages over $110,000, and in the ten worst, it falls below $1,500.

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The report's data was sourced from the International Monetary Fund's World Economic Outlook, April 2024. Values are provided in current international dollars, with matching exchange rates and PPP adjustments.

The International Monetary Fund's World Economic Outlook, published in April 2024, provided the report's top 10 richest country data. Values are given with corresponding conversion rates and PPP adjustments in current international dollars.

RankCountryGDP-PPP per capita
1.Seychelles$43,151
2.Mauritius$32,094
3.Libya$26,456
4.Botswana$20,097
5.Gabon$19,452
6.Equatorial Guinea$18,378
7.Egypt$17,614
8.Algeria$16,483
9.South Africa$16,424
10.Tunisia$13,645

Top 10 major economic sectors in Nigeria in Q1 2024

Legit.ng reported that Nigeria's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 2.98% (year-on-year) in real terms in the first quarter of 2024, according to the Nigerian Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Report Q1 2024 published by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

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This growth rate is higher than the 2.31% recorded in the first quarter of 2023 and lower than the fourth quarter of 2023 growth of 3.46%.

Legit.ng earlier reported that the World Bank had hinted that 80% of Africa's growth would be driven by the ten largest economies, with Nigeria, Côte d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Ethiopia leading the way with 40% of the region's GDP.

Source: Legit.ng

Authors:
Zainab Iwayemi avatar

Zainab Iwayemi (Business Editor) Zainab Iwayemi is a business journalist with over 5 years experience reporting activities in the stock market, tech, insurance, banking, and oil and gas sectors. She holds a Bachelor of Science (B.sc) degree in Sociology from the University of Ilorin, Kwara State. Before Legit.ng, she worked as a financial analyst at Nairametrics where she was rewarded for outstanding performance. She can be reached via zainab.iwayemi@corp.legit.ng