What is the richest country in Africa 2022? Top 20 by GDP
Africa is a powerhouse of resources and innovation. With 54 countries on the continent, much growth and development have been witnessed in recent years. Some countries have risen above their expected growth rate performance, while others can be seen struggling with their poor state of the economy. Do you know which is the richest country in Africa in 2022?
Source: UGC
Considering some countries' economic state, they can become part of the richest countries in the world. This is because these states are rich in precious metals, fertile soil, and raw materials. This list was compiled using the Gross Domestic Product of every country, which means the total goods and services produced by a country.
Which country is the richest in Africa?
This is a question often searched by many people. Some want to find out where their nation falls, while some do it out of curiosity. So, here is a list of African countries by wealth.
1. Nigeria - $480.482 billion
Source: UGC
The state has a population of about 202 million and has continued dominating the list of richest countries in Africa. What is the richest country in Africa in 2022? It is certainly Nigeria. The country is bestowed with bountiful natural resources that have always seen its crude export as the country leading in terms of GDP.
Why is Nigeria the richest country in Africa? The country has a large percentage of a ready source of human resources. In addition, the country is also rich in natural resources, most especially crude oil. As of September 2021, the state was producing over 1.4 million barrels a day. Apart from oil, the state produces natural gas, limestone, niobium, lead, arable land, tin, iron ore, and zinc.
2. South Africa - $415.315 billion
Source: UGC
The beautiful country holds the second position when it comes to a high GDP. It majors in raw materials export, which includes gold, platinum metals, and iron ore. The nation has also been leading in both financial and manufacturing services. However, with the recent global economy experiencing shortcomings due to the COVID-19, South Africa might be facing challenges soon.
China, a significant iron ore trade partner to South Africa, also went through a cycle of closing down factories and many businesses.
3. Egypt - $396.328 billion
Source: UGC
The nation has been working hard to ensure they experience positive economic growth and become one of the richest parts of Africa. The state has been focusing on wholesale and retail trade, construction, tourism, and gas extractives. With a current population of over 104 million, Egypt is growing a steady GDP.
4. Algeria - $163.812 billion
Source: UGC
The state is rich in natural gas and oil, making it a good candidate for enormous economic growth. However, political instability in the state has slowed down its economic growth. Also, most countries engaged in the hydrocarbon industry had their processes halted on allegations and investigations on corruption.
5. Morocco - $126.035 billion
Source: UGC
The state's GDP slowed down to reach 2.7 per cent instead of estimations given by the World Bank. This is because the country depends on agriculture, industry, and other personal services. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the country was expected to estimate a 3.3 per cent growth rate between 2020 and 2021 due to its automotive industry. This was to increase its plant production.
6. Kenya - $109.491 billion
Source: UGC
The nation has been recording significant growth in the Sub-Saharan region. Kenya had an economic growth of over 6 per cent in 2019, resulting from investor confidence and a stable macroeconomic environment. Its strongholds are agriculture, technology, and financial services, making it one of Africa's best countries.
7. Ethiopia - $92.757 billion
Source: UGC
Ethiopia's GDP for 2021 was estimated to experience 8% growth. The nation's prime minister spearheaded and launched an economic reform forum geared towards improving their economy. However, challenges such as political and social instability, and consumer inflation, could see the GDP slowing down.
8. Ghana - $75.487 billion
Source: UGC
The state is home to exports such as crude oil, gold, cocoa, and timber. The country's growth rate was pegged at about 4.0 per cent for 2021. However, the economy has taken some time to recover from the bruises suffered from the COVID-19 pandemic. Unfortunately, this affected the state's economy in the past year.
9. Angola - $70.339 billion
Source: Getty Images
The state has been improving its structural and political reforms to balance its economy. However, it still has to recover from a negative 0.7 in its 2021 GDP. By 2022, it is estimated to make a positive leap to the tune of 2%. With more than 32 million people, Angola is rich in oil and has received massive aid and strategy plans from the IMF and World Bank to grow its GDP.
10. Tanzania - $69.238 billion
Source: UGC
With a growing population of over 60 million people, the state's GDP is estimated to have an economic growth rate of 4.1 per cent by 2021. This follows from various investments in the country's tourism industry, among other private and government efforts. Besides, the country exports cashew nuts, gold, cotton, and coffee.
11. Cote D'Ivoire - $68.845 billion
Source: UGC
With an estimated population of 25 million people, Cote D'Ivoire is a relatively large country. It is one of the largest exporters of raw cashew nuts and cocoa in the world. They also export oil and boast a large manufacturing sector. As a result, the economy is expected to leapfrog to a growth of 6.2% in 2021.
12. Democratic Republic of Congo - $54.832 billion
Source: UGC
Their large population of around 90 million people and several untapped minerals should put them at the top of this list. At the time of their independence in 1960, DRC was the second-largest economy after South Africa.
Since then, corruption, war, and political instability have derailed the country's growth. Nevertheless, the economy is expected to grow at 1.2 per cent in 2021. This is following a disastrous experience in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
13. Cameroon - $44.806 billion
Source: Getty Images
With over 25 million people, Cameroon has one of the best primary commodity economies in Africa. Just like DRC, the nation had one of the most prosperous economies in Africa after independence. Following an economic decline of about 2.8 per cent in 2020, Cameroon is expected to improve its GDP by 3.5 per cent at the end of 2021.
14. Uganda - $43.243 billion
Source: Getty Images
Uganda's population is over 44 million, and the country's economy thrives on agriculture. This economic disposition results from a climate described as moderately favourable for crops and livestock production. Like most African countries, Uganda suffers a host of economic impediments that range from political instability to poor economic decisions and resource management.
15. Tunisia - $42.733 billion
Source: Getty Images
With a population of over 11 million people, Tunisia is one of the smallest countries. However, they are giants in exports of oil, phosphates, agricultural food products, car parts manufacturing, and tourism. As a result, the economy experienced a massive 16 per cent GDP increase in the second quarter of 2021.
16. Sudan - $35.919 billion
Source: Getty Images
Sudan shares borders with countries like Libya, Chad, South Sudan, Ethiopia, and Eritrea as an African country. In 2011, South Sudan broke away from this nation to become the 54th independent African country. However, for most of its independent years, the country has been burdened with conflicts, drastically affecting Sudan's capacity to reach its economic potential.
17. Senegal - $27.576 billion
Source: Getty Images
This country's economy is dependent on a wide range of activities that include tourism, fishing, construction, mining and agriculture. Senegal enjoyed some amount of economic growth under the regime of President Abdou Diouf between 1981 and 2000 through the implementation of some privatization initiatives.
18. Libya - $27.300 billion
Source: Getty Images
With a population of over 6.9 million people, Libya is doing well for itself. Moreover, the country has been consistently striving towards an improved economy since the end of Ghadaffi's regime and the effect of coronavirus in 2020. As a result, the country's future looks good, and their GDP growth for 2021 is estimated at over 50%.
19. Zimbabwe - $25.791 billion
Source: Getty Images
This country is located in the southern region of Africa and is popularly known for its wildlife reserves and parks. One of the beauties of this country is the Victoria Falls on the River Zambezi. Its population of over 14 million people provides a human resource capacity in economic activities like agriculture, mining, manufacturing of goods and rendering of services.
20. Zambia - $21.699 billion
Source: Getty Images
Zambia shares a border with Zimbabwe, and together, they enjoy the tourist attraction that Victoria Falls provides for them on the Zambezi River. The country's economy is driven by activities in the manufacturing, mining, and tourism sector. Zambia suffered economically in 2020 like other countries worldwide, with no thanks to COVID-19, but they are recovering gradually.
Frequently asked questions
Here are some frequently asked questions about African countries. Despite wealth disparities in several African countries, there is a lot of wealth to be found. Some countries are even ranked in the lists of the most powerful.
What is the most powerful African country?
The three most powerful African countries are Nigeria, Egypt, and South Africa. Egypt and South Africa rank 29th and 31st in the world. Egypt boasts a prime location and a great military, while South Africa also has an excellent location.
Which country has the richest people?
Egypt has the wealthiest people in Africa. It is home to the highest number of billionaires in Africa, with six Egyptians holding more than $1 billion in assets.
What is the richest country in Africa per capita?
According to available statistics from various sources, Seychelles holds the number one spot on the list of richest African countries by GDP per capita. The nation with an estimated population of about 99,144 people has a Gross Domestic Product Per Capita figure in the region of $26,120. This is more than five times the figure for Nigeria's $5,280 GDP per person.
This list of the top richest countries in Africa in 2022 will soon shift as African countries become more tech-savvy and improve their GDP. If you are looking at the Gross Domestic Product, Nigeria takes the title, but the title becomes Seychelles if you decide to use the GDP per person.
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Is your country well represented in this billionaires list? Find out this and more by reading the article.
Source: Briefly News