Ghana currently ranks among the top ten wealthiest nations on the African continent in terms of the size of their Gross Domestic Products (GDP), according to a new report from the World Bank.
The World Bank, which used GDP information from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to determine the wealthiest African countries, ranked Ghana as the 8th richest country on the continent with an estimated GDP of $74.26 billion.
Undoubtedly, Nigeria maintains its position as the most populous and the wealthiest nation on the continent with an estimated GDP of $514.05 billion. Nigeria, which is also West Africa’s largest economy, has a GDP of about 7 times higher than Ghana, the second largest economy in West Africa.
The World Bank underscored that Nigeria’s large population of 211 million is a likely contributor to its large GDP. According to the World Bank, Nigeria is a middle-income, mixed economy and emerging market with growing financial, service, communications, and technology sectors.
Egypt, the second-richest country in Africa, is the third-most populous country with 104 million people. The World Bank disclosed in its report that Egypt is also a mixed economy with an emerging information and communications technology sector.
Seven wealthiest nations
Per the world Bank’s report, Egypt, South Africa, Algeria, Morocco, Kenya, and Ethiopia completed the top 7 wealthiest nations, including Nigeria. The World Bank noted that Six African countries have GDPs of over $100 billion. This means the only nation among the 7 wealthiest with a GDP less than $100 billion is Ethiopia which has a GDP of $93.97 billion.
The Ivory Coast and Angola ranked 9th and 10th with GDPs of $70.99 billion and $66.49 billion respectively. This means that 3 West African nations, Nigeria, Ghana and Ivory Coast are among the top 10 wealthiest nations on the continent. The Bretton Woods Institution stated that many of the world’s poorest nations are in Africa.
“Most economies are unstable, and poverty is widespread. There are, however, some African countries that have the fastest-growing economies in the world. The largest components of the African economy are agriculture, trade, and natural resources, and the African economy is expected to reach a GDP of $29 trillion by 2050”.
World Bank
Richest African Countries by GDP per Capita
Despite making the list of wealthiest nations in terms of GDP, Ghana failed to make the list of the top ten richest countries in Africa based on their per capita incomes. As an indicator, a country’s per capita income is mostly used as a measure of the wellbeing of its citizens. Per the data, Ghana’s per capita income is $5,970.
When looking at GDP per capita, gross domestic product per person, the richest countries on the African continent looked a little different.
Although Nigeria has the highest GDP than any African country, its GDP per capita is not in the top ten countries for GDP per capita. In terms of per capita income, Seychelles is the richest country in Africa. The World Bank stated that Seychelles economy is primarily driven by fishing, tourism, boat building, processing coconuts and vanilla, and agriculture, especially cinnamon, sweet potatoes, tuna, and bananas. Its public sector contributes the most employment and gross revenue, employing two-thirds of the total labor force.
According to the report, the ten richest countries in Africa, in terms of GDP per capita are: Seychelles ($26,120), Mauritius ($22,030), Equatorial Guinea ($18,240), Botswana ($18,110), Gabon ($16,240), and Madagascar ($13,720). The rest are Egypt ($13,080), South Africa ($12,440), Algeria ($11,430), and Tunisia ($10,590).
While there are several ways to compare a nation’s wealth, one of the best ways to measure is by taking a look at the purchasing gross domestic product of a nation. This is the value of the goods and services that come from a nation for one year. However, GDP does not consider the difference in the cost of living and inflation rates between countries as GDP per capita at purchasing power parity (PPP) does.
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