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Ethiopia leads with 36 million agricultural workers, despite Nigeria having the largest population
  • East Africa: Ethiopia leads with 36.2 million agricultural workers (27.3% of its 132.5 million population). Agriculture is vital to its economy. Tanzania follows with 19.2 million workers (approximately 28.8% of 66.6 million). Uganda has 23.4% of its 50 million population in agriculture, and Kenya employs 7.6 million workers (approximately 13.7% of 55.3 million), despite land degradation affecting 80% of its land.
  • West Africa: Nigeria has 26.8 million agricultural workers, but with a population of 232 million, it heavily depends on food imports as only 11.5% of its population work in the agriculture section. Ghana employs 5.5 million agricultural workers (16% of 34.4 million) and has strong potential for agricultural export growth, especially cocoa.
  • Central Africa: DR Congo has 18.6 million agricultural workers out of a population of 109.2 million.
  • Southern Africa: Mozambique has 9.9 million agricultural workers 29% of 34.6 million, while Madagascar employs 10.5 million (33% of 31.9 million). Agriculture is key to Madagascar’s economy but hindered by land issues, with women producing 80% of crops.
  • North Africa: Egypt has 5.7 million agricultural workers (5% of 116.5 million), and relies on irrigation due to limited arable land and high food imports.

North and Southern Africa grew their reserve in 2023, while West, East, and Central Africa saw declines
  • North Africa dominates with 53.8% of Africa’s total reserves.
  • West Africa holds 17.6%, despite economic challenges.
  • Southern Africa accounts for 20.3%, benefiting from strong reserves in South Africa.
  • East Africa lags behind with 4.4%, indicating lower reserve accumulation in the region.
  • Central Africa holds the smallest share at 4%, reflecting economic struggles and weak financial buffers.

In 2023, Libya and Algeria topped Africa’s reserves, as Egypt faced decline
  • Libya leads Africa’s reserves with $92.4B, followed by Algeria ($81.2B) and South Africa ($62.5B).
  • Morocco $36.3B reserve places it fourth among African nations.
  • Egypt’s holds $33.1B, maintaining a strong reserve position.
  • Angola ($13.9B), Tunisia ($9.24B), Kenya ($7.34B), Mauritius ($7.25B), and DR Congo ($5.1B) round out the top 10.
  • Libya and Algeria’s strong reserves highlight North Africa’s dominance in the Black continent reserve.

Africa's reserves, peaking at $560 billion in 2013, declined to $397 billion in 2022
  • In 2013, Africa’s total reserves stood at $560 billion, the highest recorded in the past decade.
  • A steady decline followed, with reserves dropping to $402 billion by 2016.
  • A moderate recovery began in 2017 at $426 billion, stabilising around $400 billion in recent years.
  • As of 2022, Africa’s total reserves were estimated at $397 billion.
  • Despite fluctuations, Africa’s reserves have hovered around $400 billion since 2019.

Africa's $375 billion reserves in 2023 make up just 2.6% of the global total​
  • Africa ranks 5th globally in total reserves. The continent’s $375B in reserves lags behind most regions, surpassing only Oceania.
  • Asia leads with $8.24T, over half of global reserves, maintaining the strongest reserve and continent buffer driven by China, Japan, and India.
  • Europe holds nearly five times Africa’s reserves, with $3.68T.
  • South America’s $590B reserves is 57% more than Africa’s.
  • Oceania remains the lowest with $84.8B.

Between 2019 and 2022, DR Congo saw the largest forest loss, with its forest area shrinking from 1,272,566 km² to 1,239,524 km²
  • DR Congo holds the largest forest area in Africa, but it declined by nearly 33,000 km² from 2019 to 2022.
  • Angola lost over 16,000 km² of forest, decreasing from 671,624 km² to 654,972 km².
  • Tanzania, Zambia, and Mozambique forests recorded declines, though at different rates.
  • Mozambique has the smallest forest area among the top countries, standing at 362,673 km² in 2022.

Top countries in Africa by their Firepower Index​
  • Egypt and Algeria dominate the top spots, reflecting their significant military investments and strategic importance in North Africa.
  • Nigeria and South Africa follow, representing West and Southern Africa, respectively.
  • Countries like Ethiopia, Angola, and the DRC have notable military capabilities but face internal challenges that may impact their effectiveness.
  • Kenya and Chad have relatively weaker militaries, though they still play important roles in their respective regions.

Aliko Dangote, the richest man in Africa has a net worth of $23.9 billion as of March 6, 2025
Key takeaways:
  • Africa’s wealthiest individual, Aliko Dangote, is approximately twice as rich as Johann Rupert and Nicky Oppenheimer.
  • Each of the three richest men in Africa have a net worth exceeding $10 billion.
  • Aliko Dangote maintains his status as Africa's wealthiest man, with a fortune that surpasses his closest rival by more than $9 billion.
  • The cumulative net worth of the five richest men in Africa is around $65.2 billion.
  • The difference in net worth between Africa's richest man and the fifth richest man is $17.1 billion.

Sudan is the leading country with the highest total number of individuals requiring assistance, alongside its UN targets among African nations
Key takeaways:
  • Mozambique has the fewest individuals requiring support from the United Nations.
  • The UN plans to help 3.6 million of the 7.8 million people in Nigeria who require assistance.
  • Sudan is the only Northern African country recorded by the UN as having people in need.
  • In East and Southern Africa, the countries with the highest and lowest numbers of individuals in need are Ethiopia and Zimbabwe, respectively.
  • The Democratic Republic of Congo and Niger have the highest and lowest number of individuals needing assistance, respectively, in West and Central Africa.

The 2023 total labour force in Africa
  • Africa's labour force continues to grow significantly, with several countries exceeding 10 million workers in 2023.
  • South Africa, despite its developed economy, has a labour force of 27 million, ranking below Tanzania and Egypt.
  • Nigeria, Ethiopia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo have the largest labour forces in Africa.
  • East Africa remains a major hub, with Kenya and Uganda featuring prominently in the top ten.

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