Out of 54 African countries, just five are responsible for half of the continent’s GDP. Standing at $2.8 trillion (£2.1 trillion) in 2024, Africa’s GDP is far from distributed evenly.
The five African economies have a combined GDP of $1.4 trillion (£1 trillion). These are South Africa, Egypt, Algeria, Nigeria and Ethiopia. These countries home 569 million people, amounting to 44 percent of the continent’s population which stands at 1.4 billion.
The rest of the population is spread throughout the other 48 countries, who are responsible for the other half of the economic output of $1.4 trillion.
Figures from the World Bank show that out of the five countries, South Africa has the highest GDP ranking of $373.23 billion, despite having the smallest population of 60.4 million.
Second is Egypt with a GDP of $347.59 billion with a population of 112.7 million, then Algeria with $266.78 and 45.6 million people, Nigeria placing fourth with $252.84 trillion and 223.8 million people and lastly, Ethiopia in fifth place with a GDP of $205.13 and a population of 126.5 million.
The combined population total of the other countries amounts to 886 million.
The Big Five economically differentiate themselves from each other, focusing on various sectors.
South Africa concentrates on finance and manufacturing, with a robust mining industry narrowing down on platinum group metals, gold and chromium which contributes to eight percent to GDP.
For Egypt, tourism plays a vital role with millions of visitors flocking each year to explore the rich history and culture of the country. Egypt also benefits from strategic control of the Suez Canal, generating significant revenue from this trading route.
Ethiopia relies heavily on agriculture, with coffee functioning as a vital economic and export driver. Being Africa’s largest coffee producer, the country exported 42,322 tons of coffee in August, bringing in $196 million in revenue, according to the Ethiopian Coffee and Tea Authority (ECTA).
Nigeria and Algeria both lean on the energy sector but in differing ways. Nigeria is a major crude oil exporter, however Algeria focuses primarily on exporting natural gas.
