Which countries are generally counted as part of sub-Saharan Africa?

Sub-Saharan Africa is defined as the region of Africa that lies south of the Sahara desert. While the specific list of countries can vary depending on the organization or the criteria used for categorization, 49 countries are generally considered part of this region.1

The following countries are typically included in sub-Saharan Africa:

• Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.1

It is important to note that these classifications are not always rigid; for example, Sudan is sometimes grouped with the countries of North Africa rather than sub-Saharan Africa.1