If you lived in Suriname instead of Burma, you would:

Health

live 6.7 years longer

In Burma, the average life expectancy is 67 years (64 years for men, 70 years for women) as of 2024. In Suriname, that number is 74 years (71 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2024.

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see 4.0 times more spent on your healthcare

Burma spends $283 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Suriname spends $1,143 as of 2023.

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have 21.2% more access to essential health services

Burma scores 52 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Suriname scores 63 as of 2021.

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be 77.8% more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Burma, 0.9% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Suriname, that number is 1.6% of people as of 2024.

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be 3.8 times more likely to be obese

In Burma, 8.1% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Suriname, that number is 30.8% of people as of 2024.

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be 7.7 times more likely to die by suicide

Burma has a suicide rate of 2.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Suriname, it is 22.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Economy

make 4.7 times more money

Burma has a GDP per capita of $1,489 as of 2025, while in Suriname, the GDP per capita is $7,070 as of 2025.

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be 2.6 times more likely to be unemployed

In Burma, 3.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Suriname, that number is 7.8% as of 2025.

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Life

be 54.6% less likely to die during childbirth

In Burma, approximately 185.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Suriname, 84.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 54.9% less likely to die during infancy

In Burma, approximately 32.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Suriname, on the other hand, 14.8 children do as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 29.7% more likely to have access to electricity

In Burma, approximately 77% of people have electricity access (95% in urban areas, and 69% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Suriname, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 99% in rural areas) as of 2023.

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be 98.6% more likely to have internet access

In Burma, approximately 44.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Suriname, about 87.4% do as of 2023.

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be 14.4% more likely to have access to drinking water

In Burma, approximately 86% of people have access to drinking water (96% in urban areas, and 81% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Suriname, that number is 98% of people on average (99% in urban areas, and 97% in rural areas) as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 21.3% more on healthcare

Burma spends 4.5% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Suriname, that number is 5.4% of GDP as of 2023.

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Geography

see 80.0% less coastline

Burma has a total of 1,930 km of coastline. In Suriname, that number is 386 km.

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Safety

be 16.1% less likely to die in a road accident

In Burma, road accidents kill 19.3 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Suriname, they kill 16.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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be 2.5 times more likely to be murdered

Burma has a homicide rate of 2.6 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Suriname, that number is 6.5 per 100,000 as of 2023.

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Infrastructure

find 6.5 times more home broadband

Burma has 2.9 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Suriname has 18.8 as of 2024.

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live with 31.9% less strain on fresh water

Burma withdraws 6% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Suriname withdraws 4% as of 2022.

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use 7.9 times more electricity

Burma uses 368 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Suriname uses 2,897 kWh as of 2023.

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Environment

be 45.1% less likely to die from air pollution

In Burma, air pollution causes 71.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Suriname, it causes 39.0 as of 2019.

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emit 7.0 times more CO2

Burma emits 0.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Suriname emits 4.1 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this

Suriname: At a glance

Suriname is a sovereign country in South America, with a total land area of approximately 156,000 sq km. First explored by the Spaniards in the 16th century and then settled by the English in the mid-17th century, Suriname became a Dutch colony in 1667. With the abolition of African slavery in 1863, workers were brought in from India and Java. Independence from the Netherlands was granted in 1975. Five years later the civilian government was replaced by a military regime that soon declared a socialist republic. It continued to exert control through a succession of nominally civilian administrations until 1987, when international pressure finally forced a democratic election. In 1990, the military overthrew the civilian leadership, but a democratically elected government - a four-party coalition - returned to power in 1991. The coalition expanded to eight parties in 2005 and ruled until August 2010, when voters returned former military leader Desire BOUTERSE and his opposition coalition to power.
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How big is Suriname compared to Burma? See an in-depth size comparison.

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