If you lived in Djibouti instead of Cuba, you would:

Health

be 49.3% less likely to be obese

In Cuba, 23.0% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Djibouti, that number is 11.7% of people as of 2024.

View global rankings →

be 42.3% less likely to die by suicide

Cuba has a suicide rate of 13.8 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Djibouti, it is 8.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.

View global rankings →

live 12.1 years less

In Cuba, the average life expectancy is 78 years (76 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024. In Djibouti, that number is 66 years (64 years for men, 69 years for women) as of 2024.

View global rankings →

see 94.0% less spent on your healthcare

Cuba spends $2,575 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Djibouti spends $155 as of 2023.

View global rankings →

have 97.8% fewer doctors per person

Cuba has 95.4 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2021. Djibouti has 2.1 as of 2022.

View global rankings →

have 47.0% less access to essential health services

Cuba scores 83 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Djibouti scores 44 as of 2021.

View global rankings →

Economy

be 14.9 times more likely to be unemployed

In Cuba, 1.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Djibouti, that number is 26.0% as of 2025.

View global rankings →

Life

have 2.4 times more children

In Cuba, there are approximately 8.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Djibouti, there are 20.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

View global rankings →

be 4.6 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Cuba, approximately 35.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Djibouti, 162.0 women do as of 2023.

View global rankings →

be 6.3 times more likely to die during infancy

In Cuba, approximately 6.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Djibouti, on the other hand, 43.0 children do as of 2024.

View global rankings →

Basic Needs

be 34.8% less likely to have access to electricity

In Cuba, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Djibouti, that number is 65% of people on average (75% in urban areas, and 37% in rural areas) as of 2023.

View global rankings →

be 16.3% less likely to have access to drinking water

In Cuba, approximately 95% of people have access to drinking water (96% in urban areas, and 92% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Djibouti, that number is 80% of people on average (84% in urban areas, and 62% in rural areas) as of 2024.

View global rankings →

Expenditures

spend 75.7% less on healthcare

Cuba spends 9.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Djibouti, that number is 2.3% of GDP as of 2023.

View global rankings →

Geography

see 91.6% less coastline

Cuba has a total of 3,735 km of coastline. In Djibouti, that number is 314 km.

View global rankings →

Safety

be 4.3 times more likely to die in a road accident

In Cuba, road accidents kill 5.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Djibouti, they kill 23.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.

View global rankings →

Infrastructure

live with 73.6% less strain on fresh water

Cuba withdraws 24% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Djibouti withdraws 6% as of 2022.

View global rankings →

find 52.3% less home broadband

Cuba has 3.1 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Djibouti has 1.5 as of 2023.

View global rankings →

Environment

emit 59.7% less CO2

Cuba emits 1.9 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Djibouti emits 0.8 tonnes as of 2024.

View global rankings →

be 90.3% more likely to die from air pollution

In Cuba, air pollution causes 31.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Djibouti, it causes 59.0 as of 2019.

View global rankings →


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

Djibouti: At a glance

Djibouti is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 23,180 sq km. The French Territory of the Afars and the Issas became Djibouti in 1977. Hassan Gouled APTIDON installed an authoritarian one-party state and proceeded to serve as president until 1999. Unrest among the Afar minority during the 1990s led to a civil war that ended in 2001 with a peace accord between Afar rebels and the Somali Issa-dominated government. In 1999, Djibouti's first multiparty presidential elections resulted in the election of Ismail Omar GUELLEH as president; he was reelected to a second term in 2005 and extended his tenure in office via a constitutional amendment, which allowed him to begin a third term in 2011. Djibouti occupies a strategic geographic location at the intersection of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden and serves as an important shipping portal for goods entering and leaving the east African highlands and transshipments between Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. The government holds longstanding ties to France, which maintains a significant military presence in the country, and has strong ties with the United States. Djibouti hosts several thousand members of US armed services at US-run Camp Lemonnier.
Read more

How big is Djibouti compared to Cuba? See an in-depth size comparison.

Share this

Ask the Elsewhere Community

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