Biggest and Smallest National Gaps Between Rich and Poor (and Where America Ranks)

South Africa

In South Africa, where discriminatory apartheid laws reigned for 50 years, the Gini Index score is 62.5. South Africa has nearly the greatest income disparity in the world, beaten only by Lesotho, a small landlocked kingdom within South Africa itself. South African diamond businessman Nicky Oppenheimer is worth $7.7 billion. The average South African makes $1,260 monthly.