Sonia Purcell - Courier Mail

The three richest people in the world are worth more than the 43 poorest nations, a survey reveals.

Bill Gates and Paul Allen, the top two shareholders in the giant Microsoft software corporation, and American financier Warren Buffett together have assets of $A232.5 billion.

Of the world's 200 richest people, 65 are American.

The world's richest 200 have doubled their wealth in just four years to $1400 billion, according to the United Nations survey.

They are now worth as much as the combined wealth of the poorest 41 percent of the world's population.

This equates to the richest 200 having more financial assets than 2.25 billion people combined.

Gates, 43, saw his fortune soar from $74.5 billion to $130 billion in the past year.

Forbes maganzine was conducting its annual review of wealth.

If he maintains the growth Gates will become the first dollar trillionaire withina decade.

Just 1 percent of the annual income of the super-rich 200 club - which includes the Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and the Sultan of Brunei - would pay for every child on the planet to attend primary school.

Apart from the tiny oil-rich sultanate of Brunei, America is still the richest country in the world - with an average income of $43,500 per man, woman and child.

It is followed by the economic powerhouse of Singapore, then Kuwait, Switzerland, Norway, Hong Kong and Japan.