Queen Eugene
For clarity, low income countries have a Gross National Income (GNI) per capita of $1,045 or less, and are usually the poorest countries in the world.
On the other hand, the high income countries have a GNI per capita of at least $12,696, while the upper middle income countries have a GNI per capita of at least $4,096. Also, the GNI per capita in lower middle income countries stands at between $1,046 and $4,095.
Many low income countries rely heavily on development aids and subsidised loans from multilateral lenders such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The World Bank classifies all the countries in the world into different development categories, based on certain yardsticks. Currently, there are four broad categories —high income countries, upper middle income countries, lower middle income countries, and low income countries.
Here are top 20 African countries which are on the World Bank’s low income list, due to low GNI per capita:
- Somalia, $130
- Mozambique, $490
- Madagascar, $520
- Central African Republic, $520
- DR Congo, $530
- Sierra Leone, $540
- Liberia, $580
- Sudan, $590
- Niger, $600
- Eritrea, $600
- Togo, $690
- Chad, $700
- Gambia, $750
- Uganda, $780
- Burkina Faso, $780
- Burundi, $780
- Guinea Bissau, $820
- Rwanda, $830
- Ethiopia, $850
- Mali, $870
Many low income countries rely heavily on development aids and subsidised loans from multilateral lenders such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
