Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Papua New Guinea instead of Ethiopia, you would:
Health
see 55.1% more spent on your healthcare
Ethiopia spends $86 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Papua New Guinea spends $133 as of 2023.
be 70.0% less likely to die by suicide
Ethiopia has a suicide rate of 6.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Papua New Guinea, it is 1.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 2.1 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Ethiopia, 0.7% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 1.5% of people as of 2024.
live 1.3 years less
In Ethiopia, the average life expectancy is 68 years (64 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 66 years (64 years for men, 69 years for women) as of 2024.
be 9.6 times more likely to be obese
In Ethiopia, 2.9% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 28.0% of people as of 2024.
have 57.3% fewer doctors per person
Ethiopia has 1.4 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Papua New Guinea has 0.6 as of 2023.
have 14.3% less access to essential health services
Ethiopia scores 35 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Papua New Guinea scores 30 as of 2021.
Economy
be 22.6% less likely to be unemployed
In Ethiopia, 3.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 2.6% as of 2025.
make 3.2 times more money
Ethiopia has a GDP per capita of $933 as of 2025, while in Papua New Guinea, the GDP per capita is $3,020 as of 2025.
Life
be 43.9% more likely to be literate
In Ethiopia, the literacy rate is 60.5% as of 2022. In Papua New Guinea, it is 87.0% as of 2022.
have 22.8% fewer children
In Ethiopia, there are approximately 31.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, there are 24.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 63.0% less likely to have access to electricity
In Ethiopia, approximately 55% of people have electricity access (95% in urban areas, and 44% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 20% of people on average (65% in urban areas, and 13% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 14.3% less likely to have internet access
In Ethiopia, approximately 21.9% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, about 18.8% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 66.1% less on education
Ethiopia spends 2.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Papua New Guinea spends 0.8% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
Safety
be 15.8% less likely to die in a road accident
In Ethiopia, road accidents kill 17.7 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Papua New Guinea, they kill 14.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 99.6% less strain on fresh water
Ethiopia withdraws 32% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Papua New Guinea withdraws 0% as of 2022.
find 61.0% less home broadband
Ethiopia has 0.6 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Papua New Guinea has 0.2 as of 2024.
Environment
be 17.4% less likely to die from air pollution
In Ethiopia, air pollution causes 46.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Papua New Guinea, it causes 38.0 as of 2019.
emit 3.5 times more CO2
Ethiopia emits 0.1 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Papua New Guinea emits 0.5 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Ethiopia vs. Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea: At a glance
How big is Papua New Guinea compared to Ethiopia? See an in-depth size comparison.