North Africa is a region that is occupied by nations that are in the category of developing nations. Their economies are relatively weak, dependent on a single or handful of products or services, which makes them very vulnerable. The incomes of the people are pretty low, though there has been some slight improvement. The life expectancy is much lower than in the more developed nations, while being bigger than the sub-Saharan nations. A big problem is the literacy rate, as lot of people are still illiterate, especially the women, which limits the capabilities of the people and their economic input. The birth rates are very high, as in most of the nations of this type, but that causes more problems, as there is more and more population, while the development is very slow and can not keep up that pace.
North Africa has an average standard of living compared to the rest of the world, and a much higher standard of living than countries in sub-Saharan Africa. This is mainly due to oil income. Libya has the highest ranking (53) and Morocco the lowest (114). Life expectancy is average in North Africa. Many countries have rapidly growing, young populations, which can cause problems like unemployment. Literacy rates are rising. Despite this, most areas have very high poverty rates.
