The 50 Poorest Countries in the World: 2025 Ranking by GDP per Capita

In 2025, global economic disparities remain stark. The 50 poorest countries in the world have particularly low per capita GDP, revealing a concerning concentration of economic difficulties in specific regions. This analysis examines the economic profile of these nations.

South Sudan at the top: a persistent economic crisis

South Sudan ranks as the most precarious with a per capita GDP of only $251, followed by Yemen ($417) and Burundi ($490). These three nations face major humanitarian and political crises that hinder their economic development.

Sub-Saharan Africa: the epicenter of global poverty

Data shows that most of the world’s poorest countries are located in Sub-Saharan Africa. Countries like the Central African Republic ($532), Malawi ($580), Madagascar ($595), and Sudan ($625) complete this bleak picture. Moving up the list, we find the Democratic Republic of the Congo ($743), Niger ($751), Somalia ($766), and Nigeria ($807).

Even lower, Liberia ($908), Sierra Leone ($916), Mali ($936), The Gambia ($988), and Chad ($991) remain among the most economically fragile. Rwanda ($1,043), Togo ($1,053), Ethiopia ($1,066), Lesotho ($1,098), and Burkina Faso ($1,107) round out the African panel of this fifty.

Next are Guinea-Bissau ($1,126), Tanzania ($1,280), Zambia ($1,332), and Uganda ($1,338). All these nations face similar structural challenges: inadequate infrastructure, limited education, and poorly exploited natural resources.

South Asia and Southeast Asia: persistent poverty

Outside Africa, some Asian countries also rank among the least developed economies. Myanmar ($1,177), Tajikistan ($1,432), Nepal ($1,458), and Timor-Leste ($1,491) illustrate the economic difficulties of South Asia. Cambodia ($2,870) and Laos ($2,096) also appear in this category.

Bangladesh ($2,689), India ($2,878), and Kyrgyzstan ($2,747) are special cases: despite some economic momentum, their per capita GDP remains low due to large populations diluting the average income.

Other regions represented

Beyond Africa and Asia, other regions contribute to this list of the world’s poorest countries. Haiti ($2,672) in the Caribbean, Papua New Guinea ($2,565) in the Pacific, and the Solomon Islands ($2,379) show that economic poverty crosses continental borders.

The full ranking also includes Kenya ($2,468), Mauritania ($2,478), Ghana ($2,519), Ivory Coast ($2,872), Cameroon ($1,865), Guinea ($1,904), Republic of the Congo ($2,356), Senegal ($1,811), Comoros ($1,702), and Benin ($1,532).

Structural causes of this poverty

These poorest countries share common characteristics: political instability, armed conflicts, endemic corruption, lack of foreign investment, over-reliance on raw material exports, and weak institutional capacity. Insufficient education and limited access to healthcare exacerbate these issues.

In 2025, per capita GDP remains a key, though imperfect, indicator of economic realities. For the 50 most fragile nations, improvement requires deep reforms and coordinated international support.