I took a look at the per capita GDP figures for 2025, and it's really striking to see the huge gap between countries. The poorest countries in the world are mostly in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. South Sudan ranks first with only $251 per capita, followed by Yemen at $417 and Burundi at $490. The contrast is crazy when you think about developed economies.

Looking at the full list of the world's poorest countries, many names that we hear regularly in the news appear—DR Congo, Niger, Somalia, Nigeria. Even Bangladesh and India, despite their size, are at the bottom of the ranking with $2,689 and $2,878 respectively. Ivory Coast is at the bottom of the top 50 with $2,872.

What intrigues me is that many of these countries are rich in natural resources but remain among the poorest in terms of income per capita. It clearly shows that having resources is one thing, but how you manage and develop them is another. Global economic disparities are truly astonishing to observe.