Nigeria Emerges as the Largest Economy in Africa

Posted on 12/19/2021


With a total gross domestic product (GDP) of US$ 432.3 billion for 2020, Nigeria has become the biggest economy on the African continent over the last 30 years. The top two countries for GDP in 2020 for Africa, both have sovereign wealth funds – the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) and the Sovereign Wealth Fund of Egypt.

Nigeria has a fast-growing financial sector, coupled with a growing middle class.

Rank Gross Domsetic Product in USD Billions 2020 2005 1990
1 432.3 Nigeria South Africa South Africa
2 363.1 Egypt Nigeria Algeria
3 301.9 South Africa Algeria Nigeria
4 145.2 Algeria Egypt Egypt
5 112.8 Morocco Morocco Morocco
6 107.6 Ethiopia Libya Libya
7 98.8 Kenya Angola Sudan
8 72.4 Ghana Tunisia Cameroon

Source: World Bank

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