Are African Countries the Poorest?

We recently honored the international anti-corruption day but it is evident that third world countries are the most affected with corruption. In accordance to Forbes report, the top ten poorest countries in the world in 2023 by GDP per capita PPP are all African countries. GDP stands for Gross Domestic Product, which measures a country’s goods and services produced yearly. Its population must also be considered to get a clearer picture of how rich or poor a country is.

Reasons why African countries are struggling with corruption.

Greed for money and desires: Greed is the mother of all types of corruption, both in public and private sectors. The desire to want more has led to the misuse and theft of public funds, hence the main cause of corruption.

Low political transparency: The low levels of democracy, weak civil participation and low transparency go hand in hand as a corruption cause. Citizens have no way of knowing who finances candidates and political representatives. The lack of transparency in political financing poses alarming risks of corruption.

Poverty: Poverty causes corruption in areas with chronic problems, given that prevalence of social and income inequalities, informality, and perverse economic incentives.

Higher bureaucracy levels and inefficient administrative structures: The entire society is affected as a result of the inefficient allocation of the resources, the presence of a shadow economy, and low- quality education and healthcare.

Here are the top ten poorest countries in the world according to Forbes in August 2023.