The

Human Development Index The Human Development Index (HDI) is a statistical composite index of life expectancy, Education Index, education (mean years of schooling completed and expected years of schooling upon entering the education system), and per capita income i ...

(HDI) is a summary measure of average achievement in key dimensions of human development: a long and healthy life, knowledge, and a decent

standard of living Standard of living is the level of income, comforts and services available to an individual, community or society. A contributing factor to an individual's quality of life, standard of living is generally concerned with objective metrics outsid ...

. It is a standard means of measuring well-being. It is used to distinguish whether the country is a developed, developing, or underdeveloped country, and also to measure the impact of economic policies on

quality of life Quality of life (QOL) is defined by the World Health Organization as "an individual's perception of their position in life in the context of the culture and value systems in which they live and in relation to their goals, expectations, standards ...

. Countries fall into four broad categories based on their HDI: very high, high, medium, and low human development. Currently,

Seychelles Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (; Seychellois Creole: ), is an island country and archipelagic state consisting of 155 islands (as per the Constitution) in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, Victoria, ...

and

Mauritius Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island country in the Indian Ocean, about off the southeastern coast of East Africa, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island (also called Mauritius), as well as Rodrigues, Ag ...

are the only African countries that fall into the very high human development category.

South Sudan South Sudan (), officially the Republic of South Sudan, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered on the north by Sudan; on the east by Ethiopia; on the south by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and Kenya; and on the ...

has the lowest HDI in both Africa and the world according to the list.

List

The table below presents the latest

(HDI) for countries in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

as included in the United Nations Development Programme's Human Development Report, released on 5 May 2025 and based on data collected in 2023. As of 2025, all African UN member states are included in the report. Several dependent territories administered by non-African states are not ranked as they are not included in the latest report. Additionally, the borders and autonomy of Western Sahara are contested so an accurate HDI cannot be determined.

Notes

:1.Data for Somalia only dates back to 2022.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:List Of African Countries By Human Development Index

List

Notes

See also

References