Even while studying the world’s wealthiest nations may be exciting and inspiring, it’s vital to be aware of the less fortunate countries.
When it comes to improving people’s lives in impoverished nations, the United Nations and other international organizations rely on aiding them in their economic advancements.
Many elements contribute to the prosperity of countries, such as their natural resources, education system, and political stability.
Some but not all of the world’s poorest countries are also among the world’s least developed nations (sometimes called undeveloped countries or third-world states).
The World’s Poorest
The World Bank’s four-tiered rating system classifies the world’s poorest nations as low-income economies. GNI per capita is a measure of a country’s total income divided by its population, and this ranking is based on this figure. Gross National Income (GNI) is fairly comparable in terms of GDP per capita.
GNI, on the other hand, considers money derived from both domestic and international sources in its calculation of the total dollar value of products and services produced in a country (such as foreign investments or real estate holdings).
A country’s economic health may be more accurately measured using GNI than GDP.
GNI may be stated in two different ways. Calculated in US dollars using a methodology called the Atlas approach, which compares currencies from across the world. Purchasing power parity (PPP) international dollars are a fictitious currency linked to the value of the US dollar in a certain year.
The World Bank defines low-income countries as those with a GNI (gross national income) below $1,046 on July 1, 2021 (in current US dollars).
As measured by their 2020 GNI per capita in current US dollars, below are the 10 poorest countries in the world:
- Burundi – $270
- Somalia – $310
- Mozambique – $460
- Madagascar – $480
- Sierra Leone – $490
- Afghanistan – $500
- Central African Republic – $510
- Liberia – $530
- Niger – $540
- Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire) – $550
A list of low-income nations and their most current GNI per capita may be found in the following table.
Also See: Poorest Countries in North America 2022
Here are the 10 poorest nations in the world:
- Burundi ($270)
- Somalia ($310)
- Mozambique ($460)
- Madagascar ($480)
- Sierra Leone ($490)
- Afghanistan ($500)
- Eritrea ($510)
- Central African Republic ($510)
- Liberia ($530)
- Niger ($540)
Country | GNI per capita, Atlas method (current US$) | Latest Year | GNI per capita, PPP (current international $) | Latest Year (PPP) |
---|---|---|---|---|
Burundi | 270 | 2020 | 780 | 2020 |
Somalia | 310 | 2020 | 870 | 2020 |
Mozambique | 460 | 2020 | 1250 | 2020 |
Madagascar | 480 | 2020 | 1540 | 2020 |
Sierra Leone | 490 | 2020 | 1670 | 2020 |
Afghanistan | 500 | 2020 | 2110 | 2020 |
Eritrea | 510 | 2010 | 1610 | 2011 |
Central African Republic | 510 | 2020 | 1040 | 2020 |
Liberia | 530 | 2020 | 1250 | 2020 |
Niger | 540 | 2020 | 1210 | 2020 |
DR Congo | 550 | 2020 | 1100 | 2020 |
Malawi | 580 | 2020 | 1540 | 2020 |
Sudan | 650 | 2020 | 3970 | 2020 |
Chad | 660 | 2020 | 1580 | 2020 |
Gambia | 750 | 2020 | 2240 | 2020 |
Guinea-Bissau | 760 | 2020 | 1980 | 2020 |
Rwanda | 780 | 2020 | 2160 | 2020 |
Burkina Faso | 790 | 2020 | 2190 | 2020 |
Uganda | 800 | 2020 | 2260 | 2020 |
Mali | 830 | 2020 | 2250 | 2020 |
Ethiopia | 890 | 2020 | 2410 | 2020 |
Togo | 920 | 2020 | 2230 | 2020 |
Yemen | 940 | 2018 | 3520 | 2013 |
Guinea | 1020 | 2020 | 2580 | 2020 |
Tajikistan | 1060 | 2020 | 4500 | 2020 |
Tanzania | 1080 | 2020 | 2760 | 2020 |
South Sudan | 1090 | 2015 | 1080 | 2015 |
Zimbabwe | 1090 | 2020 | 2850 | 2020 |
Lesotho | 1100 | 2020 | 2740 | 2020 |
Zambia | 1190 | 2020 | 3360 | 2020 |
Nepal | 1190 | 2020 | 4060 | 2020 |
Haiti | 1250 | 2020 | 2930 | 2020 |
Myanmar | 1260 | 2020 | 4650 | 2020 |
Benin | 1280 | 2020 | 3470 | 2020 |
Pakistan | 1280 | 2020 | 4770 | 2020 |
Senegal | 1430 | 2020 | 3400 | 2020 |
Comoros | 1450 | 2020 | 3330 | 2020 |
Cambodia | 1490 | 2020 | 4250 | 2020 |
Cameroon | 1500 | 2020 | 3720 | 2020 |
Mauritania | 1640 | 2020 | 5240 | 2020 |
Uzbekistan | 1670 | 2020 | 7350 | 2020 |
Kenya | 1760 | 2020 | 4370 | 2020 |
Timor-Leste | 1830 | 2020 | 4490 | 2020 |
Republic of the Congo | 1830 | 2020 | 3110 | 2020 |
Nicaragua | 1850 | 2020 | 5410 | 2020 |
India | 1900 | 2020 | 6390 | 2020 |
Nigeria | 2000 | 2020 | 5000 | 2020 |
Bangladesh | 2010 | 2020 | 5310 | 2020 |
Sao Tome and Principe | 2070 | 2020 | 4260 | 2020 |
Honduras | 2200 | 2020 | 5050 | 2020 |
Ghana | 2230 | 2020 | 5470 | 2020 |
Angola | 2230 | 2020 | 6020 | 2020 |
Ivory Coast | 2280 | 2020 | 5300 | 2020 |
Solomon Islands | 2300 | 2020 | 2680 | 2020 |
Papua New Guinea | 2660 | 2020 | 4240 | 2020 |
Vietnam | 2660 | 2020 | 8200 | 2020 |
Vanuatu | 2780 | 2020 | 2880 | 2020 |
Bhutan | 2860 | 2020 | 10480 | 2020 |
Iran | 2870 | 2020 | 13150 | 2020 |
Morocco | 2980 | 2020 | 7190 | 2020 |
Egypt | 3000 | 2020 | 12210 | 2020 |
Kiribati | 3010 | 2020 | 4250 | 2020 |
Tunisia | 3100 | 2020 | 9990 | 2020 |
Bolivia | 3200 | 2020 | 8250 | 2020 |
Djibouti | 3320 | 2020 | 5620 | 2020 |
Philippines | 3430 | 2020 | 9040 | 2020 |
Ukraine | 3540 | 2020 | 13260 | 2020 |
Algeria | 3550 | 2020 | 11010 | 2020 |
Eswatini | 3580 | 2020 | 8380 | 2020 |
El Salvador | 3650 | 2020 | 8050 | 2020 |
Mongolia | 3670 | 2020 | 10930 | 2020 |
Sri Lanka | 3720 | 2020 | 12870 | 2020 |
Indonesia | 3870 | 2020 | 11750 | 2020 |
Belize | 3970 | 2020 | 5880 | 2020 |
Micronesia | 4010 | 2019 | 4100 | 2019 |
Samoa | 4070 | 2020 | 6480 | 2019 |
Armenia | 4220 | 2020 | 13080 | 2020 |
Georgia | 4290 | 2020 | 14160 | 2020 |
Jordan | 4310 | 2020 | 10320 | 2020 |
Azerbaijan | 4450 | 2020 | 14300 | 2020 |
Guatemala | 4490 | 2020 | 8690 | 2020 |
Namibia | 4520 | 2020 | 9220 | 2020 |
Moldova | 4570 | 2020 | 13520 | 2020 |
Jamaica | 4620 | 2020 | 8850 | 2020 |
Iraq | 4660 | 2020 | 9660 | 2020 |
Fiji | 4720 | 2020 | 10910 | 2020 |
Libya | 4850 | 2020 | 11250 | 2020 |
Tonga | 5000 | 2019 | 6980 | 2019 |
Marshall Islands | 5010 | 2019 | 5130 | 2019 |
Paraguay | 5140 | 2020 | 12590 | 2020 |
Albania | 5210 | 2020 | 13580 | 2020 |
South Africa | 5410 | 2020 | 11870 | 2020 |
Suriname | 5510 | 2020 | 15000 | 2020 |
Lebanon | 5510 | 2020 | 11960 | 2020 |
Ecuador | 5530 | 2020 | 10580 | 2020 |
North Macedonia | 5720 | 2020 | 16280 | 2020 |
Colombia | 5780 | 2020 | 14280 | 2020 |
Equatorial Guinea | 5810 | 2020 | 13350 | 2020 |
Tuvalu | 5820 | 2020 | 6430 | 2020 |
Peru | 6010 | 2020 | 11490 | 2020 |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | 6090 | 2020 | 15660 | 2020 |
Belarus | 6330 | 2020 | 19320 | 2020 |
Guyana | 6600 | 2020 | 15370 | 2020 |
Botswana | 6640 | 2020 | 15570 | 2020 |
Maldives | 6830 | 2020 | 12840 | 2020 |
Dominica | 6870 | 2020 | 10740 | 2020 |
Gabon | 6970 | 2020 | 14130 | 2020 |
Thailand | 7050 | 2020 | 17730 | 2020 |
Turkmenistan | 7220 | 2019 | 15600 | 2019 |
Dominican Republic | 7260 | 2020 | 17060 | 2020 |
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 7340 | 2020 | 12810 | 2020 |
Serbia | 7400 | 2020 | 18650 | 2020 |
Cuba | 7480 | 2016 | ||
Brazil | 7850 | 2020 | 14550 | 2020 |
Montenegro | 7900 | 2020 | 20870 | 2020 |
Mexico | 8480 | 2020 | 18170 | 2020 |
Kazakhstan | 8680 | 2020 | 24380 | 2020 |
Grenada | 8740 | 2020 | 14370 | 2020 |
Saint Lucia | 8790 | 2020 | 12200 | 2020 |
Argentina | 8930 | 2020 | 20210 | 2020 |
Turkey | 9050 | 2020 | 27780 | 2020 |
Bulgaria | 9540 | 2020 | 23780 | 2020 |
Mauritius | 10230 | 2020 | 22390 | 2020 |
Malaysia | 10580 | 2020 | 27370 | 2020 |
China | 10610 | 2020 | 17200 | 2020 |
Russia | 10690 | 2020 | 27550 | 2020 |
Costa Rica | 11460 | 2020 | 19840 | 2020 |
Venezuela | 11810 | 2010 | 17090 | 2011 |
Panama | 11880 | 2020 | 25010 | 2020 |
Romania | 12570 | 2020 | 31410 | 2020 |
Seychelles | 12720 | 2020 | 24310 | 2020 |
Chile | 13470 | 2020 | 23980 | 2020 |
Oman | 14150 | 2019 | 26160 | 2019 |
Croatia | 14190 | 2020 | 28630 | 2020 |
Antigua and Barbuda | 14250 | 2020 | 18610 | 2020 |
Barbados | 14460 | 2020 | 13010 | 2020 |
Poland | 15270 | 2020 | 33220 | 2020 |
Trinidad and Tobago | 15410 | 2020 | 24800 | 2020 |
Uruguay | 15830 | 2020 | 21630 | 2020 |
Palau | 16500 | 2019 | 19530 | 2019 |
Hungary | 16530 | 2019 | 33070 | 2019 |
Nauru | 16630 | 2019 | 20770 | 2019 |
Saint Kitts and Nevis | 17400 | 2020 | 24190 | 2020 |
Latvia | 17730 | 2019 | 31590 | 2019 |
Lithuania | 19000 | 2019 | 37420 | 2019 |
Greece | 19690 | 2019 | 30620 | 2019 |
Curacao | 20370 | 2019 | 26620 | 2019 |
Puerto Rico | 21740 | 2020 | 24010 | 2020 |
Czech Republic | 21930 | 2019 | 40360 | 2019 |
Saudi Arabia | 21930 | 2020 | 47790 | 2020 |
Portugal | 22000 | 2020 | 33980 | 2020 |
Bahrain | 22170 | 2019 | 44330 | 2019 |
Estonia | 23230 | 2019 | 37940 | 2019 |
Malta | 25370 | 2020 | 38800 | 2020 |
Slovenia | 25910 | 2019 | 40530 | 2019 |
Cyprus | 26110 | 2020 | 36840 | 2020 |
Aruba | 27120 | 2017 | 36750 | 2017 |
Sint Maarten | 27680 | 2018 | 35390 | 2018 |
Bahamas | 27780 | 2020 | 31200 | 2020 |
Spain | 30330 | 2019 | 42250 | 2019 |
Turks and Caicos Islands | 30700 | 2019 | 30060 | 2019 |
Italy | 32200 | 2020 | 42270 | 2020 |
Brunei | 32230 | 2019 | 66460 | 2019 |
South Korea | 32860 | 2020 | 43480 | 2020 |
Kuwait | 36290 | 2019 | 58930 | 2019 |
Japan | 41580 | 2019 | 43760 | 2019 |
United Kingdom | 42130 | 2019 | 47620 | 2019 |
France | 42290 | 2019 | 50400 | 2019 |
New Zealand | 42610 | 2019 | 43950 | 2019 |
Israel | 43070 | 2019 | 41750 | 2019 |
Canada | 43440 | 2020 | 47500 | 2020 |
United Arab Emirates | 43470 | 2019 | 70300 | 2019 |
Germany | 46980 | 2020 | 55220 | 2020 |
Belgium | 47960 | 2019 | 55370 | 2019 |
Hong Kong | 48630 | 2020 | 62510 | 2020 |
Finland | 49620 | 2020 | 51650 | 2020 |
Austria | 51390 | 2019 | 58940 | 2019 |
Netherlands | 53010 | 2019 | 59700 | 2019 |
Australia | 53730 | 2020 | 51420 | 2020 |
Sweden | 53800 | 2020 | 56270 | 2020 |
Singapore | 54920 | 2020 | 86480 | 2020 |
Qatar | 56210 | 2020 | 88070 | 2020 |
Denmark | 62720 | 2020 | 62180 | 2020 |
Ireland | 63470 | 2019 | 69190 | 2019 |
United States | 65910 | 2019 | 66060 | 2019 |
Cayman Islands | 68200 | 2019 | 58100 | 2019 |
Luxembourg | 70840 | 2018 | 74310 | 2018 |
Iceland | 72930 | 2019 | 59590 | 2019 |
Norway | 78250 | 2020 | 66020 | 2020 |
Isle of Man | 83160 | 2018 | ||
Switzerland | 87950 | 2019 | 73620 | 2019 |
Liechtenstein | 116440 | 2009 | ||
Bermuda | 117740 | 2019 | 86450 | 2019 |