Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Suriname instead of Eritrea, you would:
Health
live 4.9 years longer
In Eritrea, the average life expectancy is 69 years (67 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024. In Suriname, that number is 74 years (71 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2024.
see 13.2 times more spent on your healthcare
Eritrea spends $87 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Suriname spends $1,143 as of 2023.
have 15.4 times more doctors per person
Eritrea has 0.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Suriname has 13.6 as of 2023.
have 40.0% more access to essential health services
Eritrea scores 45 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Suriname scores 63 as of 2021.
be 4.0 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Eritrea, 0.4% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Suriname, that number is 1.6% of people as of 2024.
be 7.1 times more likely to be obese
In Eritrea, 4.3% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Suriname, that number is 30.8% of people as of 2024.
be 68.3% more likely to die by suicide
Eritrea has a suicide rate of 13.2 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Suriname, it is 22.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 30.9% more likely to be unemployed
In Eritrea, 6.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Suriname, that number is 7.8% as of 2025.
Life
be 71.1% less likely to die during childbirth
In Eritrea, approximately 291.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Suriname, 84.0 women do as of 2023.
be 24.0% more likely to be literate
In Eritrea, the literacy rate is 76.6% as of 2018. In Suriname, it is 95.0% as of 2021.
be 40.1% less likely to die during infancy
In Eritrea, approximately 24.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Suriname, on the other hand, 14.8 children do as of 2024.
have 40.3% fewer children
In Eritrea, there are approximately 28.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Suriname, there are 17.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 83.1% more likely to have access to electricity
In Eritrea, approximately 54% of people have electricity access (77% in urban areas, and 37% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Suriname, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 99% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 3.3 times more likely to have internet access
In Eritrea, approximately 26.6% of the population has internet access as of 2022. In Suriname, about 87.4% do as of 2023.
Expenditures
spend 47.0% more on healthcare
Eritrea spends 3.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Suriname, that number is 5.4% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 82.7% less coastline
Eritrea has a total of 2,234 km of coastline. In Suriname, that number is 386 km.
Infrastructure
find 110.3 times more home broadband
Eritrea has 0.2 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Suriname has 18.8 as of 2024.
live with 64.7% less strain on fresh water
Eritrea withdraws 11% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Suriname withdraws 4% as of 2022.
use 23.5 times more electricity
Eritrea uses 123 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Suriname uses 2,897 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
be 50.0% less likely to die from air pollution
In Eritrea, air pollution causes 78.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Suriname, it causes 39.0 as of 2019.
emit 18.5 times more CO2
Eritrea emits 0.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Suriname emits 4.1 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2022), The World Factbook (2018–2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Eritrea vs. Suriname
Suriname: At a glance
How big is Suriname compared to Eritrea? See an in-depth size comparison.