If you lived in Ireland instead of Central African Republic, you would:

Health

be 91.7% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Central African Republic, 2.4% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Ireland, that number is 0.2% of people as of 2024.

View global rankings →

live 25.3 years longer

In Central African Republic, the average life expectancy is 58 years (56 years for men, 60 years for women) as of 2024. In Ireland, that number is 83 years (81 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024.

View global rankings →

see 64.2 times more spent on your healthcare

Central African Republic spends $137 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Ireland spends $8,772 as of 2024.

View global rankings →

have 52.4 times more doctors per person

Central African Republic has 0.7 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Ireland has 38.8 as of 2023.

View global rankings →

have 2.6 times more access to essential health services

Central African Republic scores 32 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Ireland scores 83 as of 2021.

View global rankings →

be 2.6 times more likely to be obese

In Central African Republic, 10.9% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Ireland, that number is 27.9% of people as of 2024.

View global rankings →

Economy

be 25.9% less likely to be unemployed

In Central African Republic, 6.2% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Ireland, that number is 4.6% as of 2025.

View global rankings →

be 79.7% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Central African Republic, 68.8% live below the poverty line as of 2021. In Ireland, however, that number is 14.0% as of 2021.

View global rankings →

make 236.6 times more money

Central African Republic has a GDP per capita of $556 as of 2025, while in Ireland, the GDP per capita is $131,592 as of 2025.

View global rankings →

Life

be 99.4% less likely to die during childbirth

In Central African Republic, approximately 692.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Ireland, 4.0 women do as of 2023.

View global rankings →

be 94.2% less likely to die during infancy

In Central African Republic, approximately 58.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Ireland, on the other hand, 3.4 children do as of 2024.

View global rankings →

have 78.4% fewer children

In Central African Republic, there are approximately 46.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Ireland, there are 10.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

View global rankings →

Basic Needs

be 5.7 times more likely to have access to electricity

In Central African Republic, approximately 18% of people have electricity access (37% in urban areas, and 2% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Ireland, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023.

View global rankings →

be 7.1 times more likely to have internet access

In Central African Republic, approximately 13.8% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Ireland, about 97.2% do as of 2024.

View global rankings →

be 2.7 times more likely to have access to drinking water

In Central African Republic, approximately 36% of people have access to drinking water (48% in urban areas, and 27% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Ireland, that number is 97% of people on average (97% in urban areas, and 98% in rural areas) as of 2024.

View global rankings →

Expenditures

spend 35.7% less on healthcare

Central African Republic spends 10.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Ireland, that number is 6.8% of GDP as of 2024.

View global rankings →

spend 58.5% more on education

Central African Republic spends 1.8% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Ireland spends 2.9% of total GDP on education as of 2021.

View global rankings →

Safety

be 89.2% less likely to die in a road accident

In Central African Republic, road accidents kill 25.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Ireland, they kill 2.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.

View global rankings →

Infrastructure

find 1615.0 times more home broadband

Central African Republic has 0.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Ireland has 32.3 as of 2024.

View global rankings →

live with 23.7 times more strain on fresh water

Central African Republic withdraws 0% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Ireland withdraws 8% as of 2022.

View global rankings →

Environment

be 86.7% less likely to die from air pollution

In Central African Republic, air pollution causes 98.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Ireland, it causes 13.0 as of 2019.

View global rankings →

emit 100.7 times more CO2

Central African Republic emits 0.1 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Ireland emits 6.0 tonnes as of 2024.

View global rankings →


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

Ireland: At a glance

Ireland is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 68,883 sq km. Celtic tribes arrived on the island between 600 and 150 B.C. Invasions by Norsemen that began in the late 8th century were finally ended when King Brian BORU defeated the Danes in 1014. Norman invasions began in the 12th century and set off more than seven centuries of Anglo-Irish struggle marked by fierce rebellions and harsh repressions. The Irish famine of the mid-19th century saw the population of the island drop by one third through starvation and emigration. For more than a century after that the population of the island continued to fall only to begin growing again in the 1960s. Over the last 50 years, Ireland's high birthrate has made it demographically one of the youngest populations in the EU. The modern Irish state traces its origins to the failed 1916 Easter Monday Uprising which touched off several years of guerrilla warfare resulting in independence from the UK in 1921 for 26 southern counties; six northern counties remained part of the UK. Unresolved issues in Northern Ireland erupted into years of violence known as the "Troubles" that began in the 1960s. The Government of Ireland was part of a process along with the UK and US Governments that helped broker what is known as The Good Friday Agreement in Northern Ireland in 1998. This initiated a new phase of cooperation between Irish and British governments. Ireland was neutral in World War II and continues its policy of military neutrality. Ireland joined the European Community in 1973 and the Eurozone currency union in 1999. The economic boom years of the Celtic Tiger (1995-2007) saw rapid economic growth, which came to an abrupt end in 2008 with the meltdown of the Irish banking system. Today the economy is recovering, fueled by large and growing foreign direct investment, especially from US multi-nationals.
Read more

How big is Ireland compared to Central African Republic? See an in-depth size comparison.

Share this

Ask the Elsewhere Community

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Ireland or Central African Republic. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.