If you lived in Senegal instead of Chad, you would:

Health

live 13.7 years longer

In Chad, the average life expectancy is 55 years (53 years for men, 57 years for women) as of 2024. In Senegal, that number is 69 years (67 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024.

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see 58.3% more spent on your healthcare

Chad spends $130 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Senegal spends $206 as of 2023.

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have 28.2% more doctors per person

Chad has 0.8 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Senegal has 1.1 as of 2023.

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have 72.4% more access to essential health services

Chad scores 29 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Senegal scores 50 as of 2021.

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be 56.6% more likely to be obese

In Chad, 7.4% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Senegal, that number is 11.6% of people as of 2024.

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be 29.8% more likely to die by suicide

Chad has a suicide rate of 5.2 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Senegal, it is 6.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 16.3% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Chad, 44.8% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Senegal, however, that number is 37.5% as of 2021.

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make 91.2% more money

Chad has a GDP per capita of $1,022 as of 2025, while in Senegal, the GDP per capita is $1,955 as of 2025.

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be 2.6 times more likely to be unemployed

In Chad, 1.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Senegal, that number is 2.7% as of 2025.

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Life

be 68.3% less likely to die during childbirth

In Chad, approximately 748.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Senegal, 237.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 87.9% more likely to be literate

In Chad, the literacy rate is 26.8% as of 2021. In Senegal, it is 50.4% as of 2023.

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be 48.7% less likely to die during infancy

In Chad, approximately 56.3 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Senegal, on the other hand, 28.9 children do as of 2024.

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have 32.5% fewer children

In Chad, there are approximately 43.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Senegal, there are 29.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 6.2 times more likely to have access to electricity

In Chad, approximately 12% of people have electricity access (48% in urban areas, and 0% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Senegal, that number is 74% of people on average (96% in urban areas, and 56% in rural areas) as of 2023.

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be 4.8 times more likely to have internet access

In Chad, approximately 12.6% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Senegal, about 60.1% do as of 2024.

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be 68.6% more likely to have access to drinking water

In Chad, approximately 52% of people have access to drinking water (78% in urban areas, and 44% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Senegal, that number is 88% of people on average (95% in urban areas, and 81% in rural areas) as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 13.6% less on healthcare

Chad spends 5.0% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Senegal, that number is 4.3% of GDP as of 2023.

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spend 92.5% more on education

Chad spends 3.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Senegal spends 6.2% of total GDP on education as of 2023.

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Safety

be 21.2% less likely to die in a road accident

In Chad, road accidents kill 26.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Senegal, they kill 20.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

use 29.9 times more electricity

Chad uses 14 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Senegal uses 410 kWh as of 2023.

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live with 3.8 times more strain on fresh water

Chad withdraws 4% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Senegal withdraws 16% as of 2022.

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Environment

be 31.6% less likely to die from air pollution

In Chad, air pollution causes 95.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Senegal, it causes 65.0 as of 2019.

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emit 5.5 times more CO2

Chad emits 0.1 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Senegal emits 0.8 tonnes as of 2024.

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

Senegal: At a glance

Senegal is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 192,530 sq km. The French colonies of Senegal and the French Sudan were merged in 1959 and granted their independence as the Mali Federation in 1960. The union broke up after only a few months. Senegal joined with The Gambia to form the nominal confederation of Senegambia in 1982. The envisaged integration of the two countries was never carried out, and the union was dissolved in 1989. The Movement of Democratic Forces in the Casamance (MFDC) has led a low-level separatist insurgency in southern Senegal since the 1980s, and several peace deals have failed to resolve the conflict. Nevertheless, Senegal remains one of the most stable democracies in Africa and has a long history of participating in international peacekeeping and regional mediation. Senegal was ruled by a Socialist Party for 40 years until Abdoulaye WADE was elected president in 2000. He was reelected in 2007 and during his two terms amended Senegal's constitution over a dozen times to increase executive power and to weaken the opposition. His decision to run for a third presidential term sparked a large public backlash that led to his defeat in a March 2012 runoff election with Macky SALL.
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How big is Senegal compared to Chad? See an in-depth size comparison.

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