Which country in Africa has the most unequal incomes?

Namibia has the most unequal incomes in Africa: a Gini index of 59.1 (2015). Next come Botswana (a Gini index of 54.9) and Eswatini (a Gini index of 54.6).

Which country in Africa has the most equal incomes?

Egypt, with a Gini index of 28.5 (2021).

What is the typical income inequality (gini) of a country in Africa?

The median of the 47 countries in Africa is a Gini index of 38.5: half are above it, half below. The median, not the average, because a few countries at the top would drag an average far above almost everyone.

Where do the figures come from?

The Gini index of household income or consumption: 0 if everyone had the same, 100 if one household had everything. Household surveys are rare in some countries, so figures up to ten years old are shown. Source: World Bank, mostly 2021. Only independent states are ranked; territories are listed separately. A country’s continent follows Natural Earth; the handful of island states it files under the open ocean are placed by their UN subregion.

Countries in Africa by income inequality (gini)

The Gini index of household income or consumption: 0 if everyone had the same, 100 if one household had everything. Household surveys are rare in some countries, so figures up to ten years old are shown. 47 countries in Africa, highest first. World Bank, mostly 2021

See it on the map

Map: Income inequality (Gini) — Africa — 293234363944No data

Highest

59.1

Namibia

Median country

38.5

half above, half below

Lowest

28.5

Egypt

Countries in Africa by income inequality (gini), World Bank, mostly 2021
#	Country	Gini	Year	Region
1	Namibia	59.1	2015	Southern Africa
2	Botswana	54.9	2015	Southern Africa
3	Eswatini	54.6	2016	Southern Africa
4	South Africa	54.1	2022	Southern Africa
5	Zambia	51.5	2022	Eastern Africa
6	Angola	51.3	2018	Middle Africa
7	Zimbabwe	50.3	2019	Eastern Africa
8	Mozambique	49.6	2022	Eastern Africa
9	Lesotho	44.9	2017	Southern Africa
10	DR Congo	44.7	2020	Middle Africa
11	South Sudan	44.0	2016	Eastern Africa
12	Ghana	43.5	2016	Western Africa
13	Central African Republic	43.0	2021	Middle Africa
14	Uganda	42.7	2019	Eastern Africa
15	Cabo Verde	42.4	2015	Western Africa
16	Cameroon	42.2	2021	Middle Africa
17	Djibouti	41.6	2017	Eastern Africa
18	São Tomé and Principe	40.7	2017	Middle Africa
19	Tanzania	40.5	2018	Eastern Africa
20	Rwanda	39.4	2023	Eastern Africa
21	Gambia	38.8	2020	Western Africa
=22	Equatorial Guinea	38.5	2022	Middle Africa
=22	Kenya	38.5	2022	Eastern Africa
=22	Malawi	38.5	2019	Eastern Africa
25	Gabon	38.0	2017	Middle Africa
26	Togo	37.9	2021	Western Africa
27	Burundi	37.5	2020	Eastern Africa
=28	Burkina Faso	37.4	2021	Western Africa
=28	Chad	37.4	2022	Middle Africa
=30	Madagascar	36.8	2021	Eastern Africa
=30	Mauritius	36.8	2017	Eastern Africa
32	Senegal	36.2	2021	Western Africa
=33	Mali	35.7	2021	Western Africa
=33	Sierra Leone	35.7	2018	Western Africa
=35	Côte d'Ivoire	35.3	2021	Western Africa
=35	Liberia	35.3	2016	Western Africa
37	Benin	34.4	2021	Western Africa
38	Nigeria	33.9	2022	Western Africa
39	Tunisia	33.7	2021	Northern Africa
40	Guinea-Bissau	33.4	2021	Western Africa
41	Niger	32.9	2021	Western Africa
42	Seychelles	32.1	2018	Eastern Africa
43	Mauritania	32.0	2019	Western Africa
44	Ethiopia	31.1	2021	Eastern Africa
45	Comoros	30.3	2024	Eastern Africa
46	Guinea	29.6	2018	Western Africa
47	Egypt	28.5	2021	Northern Africa

No World Bank figure for 7 countries: Algeria, Congo, Eritrea, Libya, Morocco, Somalia, Sudan.

Questions

Which country in Africa has the most unequal incomes?: Namibia has the most unequal incomes in Africa: a Gini index of 59.1 (2015). Next come Botswana (a Gini index of 54.9) and Eswatini (a Gini index of 54.6).
Which country in Africa has the most equal incomes?: Egypt, with a Gini index of 28.5 (2021).
What is the typical income inequality (gini) of a country in Africa?: The median of the 47 countries in Africa is a Gini index of 38.5: half are above it, half below. The median, not the average, because a few countries at the top would drag an average far above almost everyone.
Where do the figures come from?: The Gini index of household income or consumption: 0 if everyone had the same, 100 if one household had everything. Household surveys are rare in some countries, so figures up to ten years old are shown. Source: World Bank, mostly 2021. Only independent states are ranked; territories are listed separately. A country’s continent follows Natural Earth; the handful of island states it files under the open ocean are placed by their UN subregion.

Source: World Bank (CC BY 4.0). Figures more than 10 years older than the newest are left out rather than shown beside current ones. Countries sharing a value share a rank. All sources.