According to a United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) official, ten African countries have the greatest levels of poverty on the continent.
Burundi, Somalia, Madagascar, South Sudan, the Central African Republic, Malawi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, and Zambia have the highest poverty burdens in Africa, according to UNECA Deputy Executive Secretary and Chief Economist Hanan Morsy, speaking at the 55th session of the UNECA Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning, and Economic Development on Tuesday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Morsy stated that in each of the ten countries, between 60 and 82 percent of the population is impoverished, citing a UNECA study.
According to the report, the UNECA estimates that African households spend up to 40% of their income on food, and the impact of global crises has been particularly harsh for Africa’s poorest households.
“In 2022, a stunning 310 million Africans experienced some sort of food insecurity, with 6 million Africans facing acute hunger,” she said.
Morsy told the two-day conference that Africa had considerable levels of poverty and inequality even before the current global crises, but that poverty has increased and inequality has widened.
“Now, 546 million people are still living in poverty, a 74 percent rise since 1990,” she remarked.
“Global shocks have ripple effects on Africa’s poor through inflation, which in 2022 was at 12.3 percent, significantly higher than the global average of 6.7 percent,” Morsy added.