If you lived in Djibouti instead of El Salvador, you would:

Health

be 63.8% less likely to be obese

In El Salvador, 32.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Djibouti, that number is 11.7% of people as of 2024.

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live 6.1 years less

In El Salvador, the average life expectancy is 72 years (68 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2024. In Djibouti, that number is 66 years (64 years for men, 69 years for women) as of 2024.

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see 86.8% less spent on your healthcare

El Salvador spends $1,176 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Djibouti spends $155 as of 2023.

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have 86.9% fewer doctors per person

El Salvador has 16.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Djibouti has 2.1 as of 2022.

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have 43.6% less access to essential health services

El Salvador scores 78 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Djibouti scores 44 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 7.9 times more likely to be unemployed

In El Salvador, 3.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Djibouti, that number is 26.0% as of 2025.

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make 32.3% less money

El Salvador has a GDP per capita of $5,767 as of 2025, while in Djibouti, the GDP per capita is $3,906 as of 2025.

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Life

have 34.2% more children

In El Salvador, there are approximately 15.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Djibouti, there are 20.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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be 4.2 times more likely to die during childbirth

In El Salvador, approximately 39.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Djibouti, 162.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 4.9 times more likely to die during infancy

In El Salvador, approximately 8.8 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.

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Basic Needs

be 33.7% less likely to have access to electricity

In El Salvador, approximately 98% of people have electricity access (99% in urban areas, and 97% 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.

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be 13.1% less likely to have access to drinking water

In El Salvador, approximately 92% of people have access to drinking water (95% in urban areas, and 80% 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.

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Expenditures

spend 75.5% less on healthcare

El Salvador spends 9.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Djibouti, that number is 2.3% of GDP as of 2023.

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Infrastructure

live with 47.6% less strain on fresh water

El Salvador withdraws 12% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Djibouti withdraws 6% as of 2022.

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find 88.2% less home broadband

El Salvador has 12.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Djibouti has 1.5 as of 2023.

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Environment

emit 49.0% less CO2

El Salvador emits 1.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Djibouti emits 0.8 tonnes as of 2024.

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be 90.3% more likely to die from air pollution

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

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Sources: World Bank (2022–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024). 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.
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How big is Djibouti compared to El Salvador? See an in-depth size comparison.

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