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• Cape Verde reclassified as an upper-middle-income country due to a 16.8% rise in GNI per capita.
• Namibia downgraded to lower-middle-income after a 12.9% decrease in GNI per capita.
• Cape Verde’s growth fueled by strong tourism, reduced unemployment, and economic reforms supported by the UN.
Two African economies have changed categories in the latest World Bank income-based country classification: Namibia and Cape Verde.
On July 1, the World Bank announced that Cape Verde has been classified as an upper-middle-income country, leaving behind the lower-middle-income category. This advancement reflects a significant improvement in gross national income (GNI) per capita.
“In 2024, Cape Verde’s GDP grew by 7.3%, driven by strong tourism growth (+16.5%). Inflation slowed, with the GDP deflator dropping from 4.1% to 1.7%. Furthermore, a downward revision of the population (-12.8%) led to a 16.8% increase in GNI per capita, allowing the country to reach high-income status according to the Atlas method,” the World Bank explained.
Namibia, conversely, experienced the opposite trend. It was downgraded from upper-middle-income to lower-middle-income status due to a 12.9% decrease in its GNI per capita.
Cape Verde launched in 2023 a cooperation framework (2023–2027) with UN support to back its development plan (PEDS-II) and revive its post-COVID economy. These reforms contributed to reducing unemployment to 10.3% and poverty to 15% in 2023, according to the World Bank.
Meanwhile, Namibia faces challenges including high public debt ($8.74 billion, or 65.3% of GDP in 2024), insufficient local production, heavy import dependence, and an economy overly reliant on mineral resources.
The World Bank notes that its country classifications are solely based on GNI per capita using the Atlas method. The 2026 fiscal year update uses 2024 data. The observed category changes reflect factors such as global economic dynamics, sustained growth in developing countries, deeper global integration, national reforms, and international support.
Ingrid Haffiny (intern)
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