Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Sierra Leone instead of Afghanistan, you would:

Health

live 5.1 years longer

In Afghanistan, the average life expectancy is 54 years (52 years for men, 55 years for women) as of 2022. In Sierra Leone, that number is 59 years (57 years for men, 60 years for women) as of 2022.

be 15.0 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Afghanistan, 0.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2020. In Sierra Leone, that number is 1.5% of people as of 2020.

be 58.2% more likely to be obese

In Afghanistan, 5.5% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Sierra Leone, that number is 8.7% of people as of 2016.

Economy

be 37.2% less likely to be unemployed

In Afghanistan, 23.9% of adults are unemployed as of 2017. In Sierra Leone, that number is 15.0% as of 2017.

make 20.0% less money

Afghanistan has a GDP per capita of $2,000 as of 2020, while in Sierra Leone, the GDP per capita is $1,600 as of 2020.

pay a 50.0% higher top tax rate

Afghanistan has a top tax rate of 20.0% as of 2016. In Sierra Leone, the top tax rate is 30.0% as of 2014.

Life

be 15.8% more likely to be literate

In Afghanistan, the literacy rate is 37.3% as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, it is 43.2% as of 2018.

be 30.0% less likely to die during infancy

In Afghanistan, approximately 104.9 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Sierra Leone, on the other hand, 73.4 children do as of 2022.

be 75.5% more likely to die during childbirth

In Afghanistan, approximately 638.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2017. In Sierra Leone, 1120.0 women do as of 2017.

Basic Needs

be 73.7% less likely to have access to electricity

In Afghanistan, approximately 99% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 98% in rural areas) as of 2018. In Sierra Leone, that number is 26% of people on average (52% in urban areas, and 6% in rural areas) as of 2019.

Expenditures

spend 33.3% less on healthcare

Afghanistan spends 13.2% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2019. In Sierra Leone, that number is 8.8% of GDP as of 2019.

spend 2.9 times more on education

Afghanistan spends 3.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2019. Sierra Leone spends 9.3% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, Afghanistan Revenue Department, National Revenue Authority.

Sierra Leone: At a glance

Sierra Leone is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 71,620 sq km. Democracy is slowly being reestablished after the civil war from 1991 to 2002 that resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and the displacement of more than 2 million people (about a third of the population). The military, which took over full responsibility for security following the departure of UN peacekeepers at the end of 2005, is increasingly developing as a guarantor of the country's stability. The armed forces remained on the sideline during the 2007 and 2012 national elections, and over the past year have deployed over 850 peacekeepers in the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). As of January 2014, Sierra Leone also fielded 122 staff for five UN peacekeeping missions. In March 2014, the closure of the UN Integrated Peacebuilding Office in Sierra Leone (UNIPSIL) marked the end of more than 15 years of peacekeeping and political operations in Sierra Leone. The government's priorities include furthering development, creating jobs, and stamping out endemic corruption.
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How big is Sierra Leone compared to Afghanistan? See an in-depth size comparison.

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