Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Mali instead of Cuba, you would:
Health
be 42.2% less likely to be obese
In Cuba, 23.0% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Mali, that number is 13.3% of people as of 2024.
be 69.8% less likely to die by suicide
Cuba has a suicide rate of 13.8 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Mali, it is 4.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 17.6 years less
In Cuba, the average life expectancy is 78 years (76 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024. In Mali, that number is 61 years (59 years for men, 62 years for women) as of 2024.
see 96.0% less spent on your healthcare
Cuba spends $2,575 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Mali spends $104 as of 2023.
have 98.0% fewer doctors per person
Cuba has 95.4 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2021. Mali has 1.9 as of 2023.
have 50.6% less access to essential health services
Cuba scores 83 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Mali scores 41 as of 2021.
Economy
be 61.7% more likely to be unemployed
In Cuba, 1.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Mali, that number is 2.8% as of 2025.
Life
have 4.6 times more children
In Cuba, there are approximately 8.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Mali, there are 39.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 10.5 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 Mali, 367.0 women do as of 2023.
be 64.3% less likely to be literate
In Cuba, the literacy rate is 99.7% as of 2021. In Mali, it is 35.6% as of 2024.
be 7.0 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 Mali, on the other hand, 47.5 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 45.5% 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 Mali, that number is 54% of people on average (92% in urban areas, and 23% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 47.8% less likely to have internet access
In Cuba, approximately 70.5% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Mali, about 36.8% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 50.5% less on education
Cuba spends 8.4% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Mali spends 4.2% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 59.4% less on healthcare
Cuba spends 9.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Mali, that number is 3.8% of GDP as of 2023.
Safety
be 3.7 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Cuba, road accidents kill 5.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Mali, they kill 20.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 66.6% less strain on fresh water
Cuba withdraws 24% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Mali withdraws 8% as of 2022.
find 75.0% less home broadband
Cuba has 3.1 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Mali has 0.8 as of 2022.
Environment
emit 84.3% less CO2
Cuba emits 1.9 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Mali emits 0.3 tonnes as of 2024.
be 2.1 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Cuba, air pollution causes 31.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Mali, it causes 65.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook (2021). How we calculate this
Compare further: Cuba vs. Mali
Mali: At a glance
How big is Mali compared to Cuba? See an in-depth size comparison.